| Bear's Awesome Photos is a joint project of photographer/artist/poet/blogger
Rev. Richard K. Stimson; and his wife, graphic artist, writer & poet Karen W. Stimson. The Stimsons, long-time
residents of New Haven, were partners in a custom clothing boutique named Abundantly Yours during the 1980's which
had an international clientele. During the 1990's, as Co-Directors of Largesse, the Network for Size Esteem, they coordinated an global campaign for size diversity empowerment, published a newsletter
entitled Food For Thought, and worked with a coalition of health professionals, feminist groups and consumer activist
organizations to promote healthy body image, empowerment and diversity issues in the media. In the late 1990's,
with their first PC, both Stimsons were caught up in the world wide web and started creating internet content.
Richard, who has been a mental health consumer for nearly 30 years, took his online name Bear from his website, a gateway to his many online universes. He has been a member of the internet blogging community for the past 3 years, and his blog at LiveJournal is consistently popular and often controversial. An ordained minister of the Universal Life Church, he maintains an online ministry of "manic mailings" to an extended list of email subscribers. Karen, who is also a ULC minister, designed and maintains the Largesse website, and has designed a number of other sites for individuals, businesses and organization, including this site. She also has created a website, "Room to Grow", for a collection of her poetry and graphics. Her graphic design site, Wool Sweater Street, includes a portal to her SuperBladePro presets which have been recognized by Flaming Pear's website, the creator of the plug-in, on its website. Bear and Karen have been proactive in the cat rescue community for many years, and currently have a family of 10 indoor cats rescued from the street, as well as a colony of stray and feral cats which they care for. Bear's interest in photography dates back to his childhood in Virginia, where he started taking pictures of the Potomac River near his family's home in Lorton. In 1999, the death of his father brought the onset of severe agoraphobia for Bear, and for nearly 5 years his connection with the world relied heavily on internet friendships. Photography was one of the keys to his integration back into the "real world" after an extended exile. His photos document his journey from the time his door opened again onto the world, through the first time he crossed the Quinnipiac River Bridge on foot alone, to the new life he enjoys with new friends and acquaintances through the nexus of Kafé, Koffee, and Moka, three coffee shops he frequents. His first exhibit as a professional photographer was a one-man show at Kafé in January, 2005. Bear uses an Olympus digital camera and a Nikon Coolpix to take his photos. All digital processing, editing, printing, matting and framing of his work is done by Karen, who also designs all his promotional material. Bear thanks Erich Davis, creator of The Ladder, and Grand Projects, where it was hosted, for permission to photograph that installation for his exhibit at the Fair Haven Library in May, 2005. |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
