40-year-old Creche

Polla and I went creche-hunting in Providence this week. I found myself in a part of town I hadn't searched before, and lo-and-behold, this one popped out of nowhere.

This Nativity was unique in that it was centered in the yard under some trees and the figures were all in a circle around the infant Jesus.

As I tried to figure out how to photograph the set, I realized that I would need to be smack-dab in the middle of the yard. Although I never ring on doorbells, I felt I needed to for this one. I was definitely going to be intruding on their property and felt I needed to introduce myself.

I rang the bell and a very nice lady came to the door. I introduced myself and she was thrilled to have me show interest in her decorations. She said they were over 40 years old and that each year they struggle if they ought to paint the figures or not. I begged her to never paint them, as I felt that's what gave them so much character.

Because I had such limited space to work in, and I didn't have a wide-angle lens, I needed to make a multi-image mosaic. I shot 23 images and put them together digitally to achieve the angle of view I wanted to get.

I especially like how Jesus is resting in an Easter basket. The melding of two Jesus-centered holidays never worked better.



40-year-old Creche, 2010