The town of Carmel, California has a name that sounds like you're saying 'caramel' with a caramel in your mouth. Little wonder that this idyllic ocean-side alcove attracted the day's intelligentsia like bees to...well, you get the idea. The artists that flocked in droves were after, not honey, but close to it; they were searching for their own version of the sweet life, and the ones who shacked-up there went on to form the Carmel Arts and Crafts Club in 1905. Residents of
Caramel by the Sea included Mary Austin, Upton Sinclair & George Sterling to name a few. It makes me wonder that if Toronto was balmy all year round and had an ocean in place of a lake, if people would quit complaining and focus more on the arts. Canadian ex-pats get a lot of flack for seeking out southern climates while we all attempt to make-do and carve our identity out of ice for half the year. But I really don't blame 'em on those extra cold nights...
Lucky for us,
Arnold Genthe was around to capture Carmel's haunting seascapes back when they were virtually untouched by Modern America. I could just drink these photos; whether or not the style of such old photographic processes debases the reality of the landscapes' mood, this must've been a lovely place. Perpetual twilight with a twist of salty spray.
Many humid & moonlighted nights ahead of us now...
