The Devil's in The Details, And So is Sublimity

Light Play, Sweep of Clouds

Little Secrets of the Forest

Water

The Details

Bark Abstract

Primeval Patterns

Barkscape

Lichen Painting

Textures in nature abound. To me it's a miracle just how many variations on a theme exist on every tree, every boulder, every expanse of water or sky. Infinity is manifest on so many levels. The details are there everyday to please our eyes and lead us to the recognition of forces so much greater than ourselves. Like variations on a theme or algorithmic permutations, the symphonic display of colors and surface markings is the calligraphy of the cosmos. Above you see sky, clouds, water, rock, and several views of bark and lichen. Each entity carries endless potential for changing form, surface character, or other properties. Our cup is always full with dynamic and ever-changing forms of beauty--if we will see them.

I can't begin to imagine how much more beauty and diversity of form exists in the vast world that is beyond my little sphere, but that makes the excitement and promise of mysteries to come, even greater.

All images and text c Lynda Lehmann. If you would like to view more of my art or make a purchase, please visit Lynda Lehmann Painting and Photography or my gallery at Imagekind, where you can choose from several sizes and paper types or buy my prints plain or matted and framed.

Consciousness

Entity

Balancing Act

Quixotic Rainbows

Consciousness

I've long had a fascination with consciousness. The idea of consciousness includes concepts like ideation, mindset, attitude, memory, mindfulness, conceptualization, creativity. One can go on and on adding aspects and dimensions to any description of consciousness, and that is precisely why it fascinates me. The human experience is so unlimited and multi-dimensional, as to appear infinite. The older I get, the more I become intrigued both by my own creative drive and by the creative proclivities of people around me. Our consciousness, both individually and collectively as an evolving species, is something to celebrate!

Working with my husband on the house these past weeks, has me painting moldings and doors in my sleep! Thank goodness I can squeeze in an hour or so in the evenings, to produce some digital art. The creative act expands my mind and releases me from the ties to everyday activities, which can get pretty repetitive.

I hope you find these images to be contemplative or meditative, or at least engaging. My favorite is "Quixotic Rainbows." I enjoy the colors and the idea of patches of rainbows, moving through time. And I like the spatial relationships in this one. Which do you like the best, if any?

All images and text c Lynda Lehmann. If you would like to view more of my art or make a purchase, please visit Lynda Lehmann Painting and Photography or my gallery at Imagekind, where you can choose from several sizes and paper types or buy my prints plain or matted and framed.

Serene Lake Scenes, Seen from the Shallows

Glory

Heading Out

Pointing West

Preening Loon and Mate

Reflections of Heaven

Where A Tree Grows

Heads Up

Tendrils

Emerging Lilies

A Whisper and A Prayer

Emerald Grasses

Cove

Yesterday we worked until 4:30. It was time to call it a day, a bit earlier than usual. We needed a break so we took our small aluminum boat out. It's well-suited to shallow waters, and easier to handle than a canoe, when encumbered with a camera and bag.

We headed into the fresh-water marsh at the near end of the lake, and here are a few photos of the delightful sights we saw. I didn't get a good shot of the new beaver lodge--last year's is abandoned--but I'll post it when I get one.

As you can see, the most elegant and luminous golden grasses sparkled in the sparkling water, while emerging, fresh (as yet uneaten by beetles) lily pads with unfurling scalloped edges floated in the sun. In the photo above, what you see sprinkled in the water around the lilies, is pollen. Pollen was everywhere, in staggering amounts, washed into long necklace-like strands that coated plant life, boulders, and fallen snags. It seemed a fitting counterpoint to the ice lines etched on the flanks of rocks protruding from the water.

The globes of yellow lily flowers poked their heads above the water's surface like little echoes of the golden sun.

A large turtle basked on a sunken log, and he stayed still as we cut the engine to float nearer to him. When finally I made the mistake of moving my leg over an oar--we always take oars in case the engine fails--he disappeared.

We saw a Baltimore Oriole singing on a bush, seemingly a song of joy. Unfortunately my shots of the Oriole are blurry, so I left them out.

At the far end of the marsh we cut the engine again and sat transfixed and awed by the symphony of bull frog and peeper calls that echoed out of the shallows, filling the world and transforming it with sound, as the gentle breeze rocked the boat and caressed our cheeks.

Shadows of clouds in the water made an alluring parallel universe of ripples and reflections.

I just wanted to convey some of the splendor and pouring forth of new life that we were able to partake of. It's not easy to get quality shots from a moving (and rocking) 17-foot boat, but I try.

Being in Maine makes me feel at peace. It's like being on another planet, a planet once lost and forgotten but forever imbued in our consciousness... All my dreams return to me and come alive when I'm here. I LOVE the deep, resilient silence of the starlit night, and the infinite shimmer and flux of the lake by daylight. And the cries of the loon....

I only wish I could share it all with you in real-time.

I wish you peace and joy on Father's Day!

All images and text c Lynda Lehmann. If you would like to view more of my art or make a purchase, please visit Lynda Lehmann Painting and Photography or my gallery at Imagekind, where you can choose from several sizes and paper types or buy my prints plain or matted and framed.

A Bull's Content

My husband and I like to take rides around the Maine countryside whenever possible, even if only for half an hour. With all this work going on, we need an occasional break!

There's so much to see in Maine: of Americana, rural life, and local color. Each home, farm or village seems to call out it's own unique history. The slick and staccato nervous pulse of the city is replaced by nature. And the story of each piece of property, reflecting the lives of its past and present owners, is often hinted at, if not readily apparent. I'm fascinated not only by the lay of the lush green land, but by the trappings of life, both humble and high-reaching but always human, that are visible from the road.

Above you see a shed that caught my interest, it's somewhat dilapidated form seeming to declare that it has been abandoned. "Stop the car," I said when I first spotted it and rolled down the window. To accomodate my photographic whim, my husband applied the brakes.

I was shooting the aged wood and rusty old tools and enjoying the angles of this country shed when my husband said, "Holy cow, there's an animal in there!"

At that very moment a gigantic bull emerged into the light to see what the commotion was, and stared at us somewhat dispassionately in the glaring afternoon light. No cow was he, but a very large animal, to say the least.



Here he is, pulled into view by my telephoto lens. Lucky me: I didn't have to move any closer! Even a young bull (witness the small, emerging horns) who seems complacent and may even have been castrated, was no draw for this cautious, city slicker. I kept my distance!



Yet he looked so sweet, all whiskers and soft, curious eyes, with strands of his (late) lunch protruding from the side of his mouth. No question about it, though, he was quite a large animal, young or not. It would be best to move off, let him have his peace and finish his lunch.

I hope he's comfortable inside his little house in the sunshine of the Maine countryside.

I love the landscape of the Northeast United States, particularly Maine. What places have you visited that take you out of your everyday frame of mind, or even take your breath away?

In the coming weeks I'll share more images from scenic Maine, with you. I apologize for being late in visiting your blogs, but I will get there as much as weeks of painting doors and a thousand moldings, will permit. I'm glad I wrote this post ahead of time, as I would not have been able to write it this week...


All text and photos c Lynda Lehmann. If you would like to see more of my art, photos, digital art and paintings, please visit www.lyndalehmann.com.

Experience as a Survival Imperative, for Humanity and Our Earth

Elemental Beauty - Image c Lynda Lehmann 2009

A few days ago I read Robb's post Troubled Waters, at Musings at Aorotea. Robb's posts always resonate with me. They speak truths that many of us don't take the time to articulate, and his passion and wisdom inspire me. You might want to go over to read it and see if you feel the same way. Robb's heartfelt post moved me to write this related post.

Thinking about Robb's words, I remembered canoeing on stretches of the Delaware in places where my oar could not cut through the tangle of weeds nurtured by fertilizer runoff from surrounding farms. It was literally impossible to pull an oar through that underwater thicket. I'm sure that over the years, many would-be canoers have had to turn back when the going got tough, as we did. It was difficult and very sad to have to explain to our then six-year-old daughter, why we couldn't continue downstream.

I've seen pristine jewels of azure blue lakes nestled in the hills of New Hampshire, glistening in the sun, only to find out that they are dead from acid rain. NOTHING lives in them. I've also discovered other gems of lakes not in proximity to towns or industry, that are fighting infestations of Eurasian milfoil, an invasive aquatic plant.

I've seen a small local lake fouled by the waste of a single diaper containing fecal material. How irresponsible and unnecessary it was for that thoughtless person to pollute the crystal clear water with a disposable diaper, full of human waste! Our waterways are not garbage cans.

It's imperative to our survival on this Earth, for us to treat all aspects of the natural world with reverence. It is our precious planet that sustains all life, and we should not foul or squander our resources.

It seems we will be in an eternal struggle with what is pure and magnificent, in trying to build the edifices of human technology. At this rate, our realizations will come too late. I'm naturally an optimist but the writing is on the wall: man subjugates Nature. At least, he tries to!

It's not that we INTEND her destruction. But our profit motives and limited perspectives keep us anchored in an acquisition mentality, instead of an experiential mentality. It seems that we have given ourselves up to fear, and in trying to assuage our chronic, creeping fear--of loneliness, deprivation, scarcity, enmity--we forget about the imperative for pursuing EXPERIENCE. When we don't take time to experience the natural world, life becomes stale and much less meaningful. And then we forget to take care of Planet Earth, who sustains us and delights us with her beauty, as well.

We live in cages of our own device. Our complacency makes us accomplices as we further plunder the Earth in ways that are destructive and unsustainable.

When I'm here in the forests of Maine, feeling the embrace of the natural world, I sleep in peace.... I think we would all sleep better all the time, if we found our political will and took a stand on environmental issues that effect our collective survival.

What's the most joyous experience you've ever had, in encounter with nature? On the other side of the coin, have you run head-on into any form of environmental destruction that was clearly wrought by humankind?