Cauldron - 2012

When the image above first began to take shape, it seemed as though the weight of the air was pressing down, creating a pocket of intense heat. But that vision transformed itself and soon the calming blues were bubbling up out of that spot as if out of a cauldron heated by the earth itself, bringing light and a peaceful clarity. Letting the work speak for a while was important in knowing where to take it.

The same was true of the Golden Path, below. There really was a path of golden grasses snaking gently through some lowland held by the county for flood control. The s-curve with the blue water in the background called, but it took some time to hear.

A Golden Path - 2012

Golden Touch - 2012

Cloudscapes from the Heartland are two more examples from a series of abstracts begun about a month ago. Originally meant to be evocative studies in color, texture and motion, some have become suggestive of landscapes and other scenes. Both of these images began as landscape photographs — one of Sarasota Bay in Florida, and the other of a wind generator in the flat lands of Iowa.

Compared to images with an unambiguous subject, abstract images can be more difficult for many people (perhaps most people) to appreciate and understand. One goal may be to find a middle ground where allusion to a subject adds substance and depth that complements the simpler pleasures of line and color.

Funnel - 2012

(Three of this series of abstracts were among more than 300 pieces submitted to a juried show at Art Center Sarasota. All three were accepted, and one received an honorable mention from the jurors.)

New Light - 2011

After the darkest day has passed, it feels right to celebrate the light. Just as the return of the sun will bring spring, honoring the light within can feed our sense of wonder.

May this season and the New Year bring wonder and light to everyone.

A Light Within - 2011

Heat Wave - 2011

There are days, in the afternoon especially, when the sand can burn your feet and the heat rises into your face.

Closer to the water the sand is damp and cooler. Looking down at the shells deposited along the waterline one can contemplate the spiral structure that is home to many creatures of the sea.

Seashore Snailshape -- 2011

White Birds and the Sea - 2011

Looking out over the calm gulf waters at the distant horizon, the bands of colors across sky and sea are gently meditiative. Objects in the foreground may come unglued and seem to float. It can be worth a few minutes to let them.

A Light at the End - 2011

Behind the Palm Avenue Garage - 2011

The qualities of a built environment have a lot to do with how people feel about a place.

The alley behind the new Palm Avenue parking garage is wide, clean, new, and bordered on each side by towering walls of concrete. Looking down this oversized tunnel one is greeted with a surprising view of the run down and graffiti-graced backside of a Main Street gallery. Are you repulsed or drawn toward the light?

1367 Main - 2011

Red Beware! - 2011

Two singular items. Their colors and shapes speak. Does it matter what they are, or is it better just to wonder what they might be?

Stone Ball in Sand - 2011

Kress Building - 2011

The cross is one of humanity’s more ancient and ubiquitous symbols. An early interpretation was as a representation of the intersection between the divine (the vertical line) and the earthly (the horizontal line). In modern times this has been trivialized in our use of the cross on road signs to signify an intersection of roads ahead.

The cross has also represented the division of the world into four elements, the four cardinal points on the compass, man, and of course, the symbolism of the crucifiction associated with Christian religions around the world. While this last may be the most familiar (along with the common road sign), it is worth imagining the many other possible meanings when confronted with the image of a cross in unexpected places.

Repent Sarasota - 2011

Losing Himself -- 2011

The land and sea meet gently along Siesta Key on Florida’s Gulf coast. A wide expanse of white sand tapers gradually toward the water, and the water subtly deepens as one walks away from shore. And sometimes, land and sea intermix when heavy rain, or waves during a falling tide, leave channels in the sand where shallow pools linger until filled in by the tide once again.

These are two portraits of that shifting spot between land and sea, the first in the white heat of a summer afternoon, and the second in the quiet coolness of an early morning with the slanting sunlight illuminating a lone bird and the city in the distance.

Feeding in the Shallows -- 2011

Friends - 2011

People enjoying a festival are one of the many things that help define a place and a community. The two men standing next to each other, one in red festival garb, look up the street and communicate as men often do — by standing next to each other saying nothing. And the young girl concentrates on her performance as a majorette, baton in hand, whistle ready, her pleasure in the performing clearly visible to those who look. So much is said in the faces and actions of the people, yet so much is left unsaid.

[Note: These two images are a part of the series from the 2010-11 holiday festival on St. Croix also featured in the previous post.]

Majorette with Whistle - 2011