Wishing You A Clear Path...

Wishing you a clear path,
the courage of conviction,
sureness of your own integrity...
and still waters.

Wishing you wonders of the forest 
in dazzling light 
and nature's solace when you need it.

Wishing blessings for you and your loved ones
at holiday time and always....
Wishing you Peace.



Happy Holidays and Peace to All.

All images and text on this blog are copyrighted material, and may be used only with written permission, except where syndication rights have been granted. All other rights reserved. Please visit my primary art site at http://www.lyndalehmann.com/gallery if you would like to see my acrylic paintings and more of my photography and digital art.  I hope you enjoyed your visit to my blog!

Curious Crew

Curious Crew - Image c 2010 Lynda Lehmann

A herd of friendly cows out to pasture on a Maine farm, is curious at the presence of passersby.  I got such a kick out of the way they made their way across the field in an orderly cue, and then turned their heads in unison to look at the camera-toting woman on the road.  They struck me as very gentle, curious and sweet, and I think they would have sauntered all the way over to say hello, if it weren't for the electrified fence enclosing their pasture.  By the way they hang together, one can surmise that they must be very social animals.
I remember seeing some calves turned out to pasture one year, on a different farm.  They were playful and exuberant, like children finally busting out of class on a gorgeous afternoon.  Not to cast them with human traits, but to me their innocence seemed very real and palpable. 
It's at times like this when I question how it is that we can eat meat!  I'm not a vegetarian but the idea of consuming these gentle creatures does not sit well with me.
I shot this image in September but when I saw it in my files today, I wanted to share it with you. 

All images and text on this blog are copyrighted material, and may be used only with written permission by the author/artist, except where syndication rights have been granted. All other rights reserved. Please visit my primary art site at http://www.lehmann.myexpose.com/gallery if you would like to see my paintings and more of my photography and digital art!

Serendipity is Nature's Generosity

Lamb's Ears - Image c Lynda Lehmann

I've been wanting to get back to painting, because painting is my first love.  I had promised myself that my next post would be about pigment instead of pixels.  But nature intervened and threw me a curve.  
I had all but given up on finding anything pixel-worthy on my walk today, when I stumbled upon these dried "Lamb's Ears" plants (as a friend of mine calls them).  They are just slightly wilted from the cold, which has been intense for a December on Long Island.  But their light gray-green color was outstanding against the auburn of dried, fallen leaves.
It's sometimes hard to find subjects to shoot on suburban streets, unless one comes across a wooded area or something at the very edge of the street. In order to respect people's privacy, or should I say their feelings about privacy, I never point my camera towards a house.  That's why I so enjoy getting out of the neighborhood to the larger outdoor spaces with my camera.  Not only is there usually more to shoot, but I feel free to point my camera in any direction.
Nature came through again today, with a subject that I feel holds a good deal of beauty and mystery.  I've seen this cluster of plants in the same location before, but today the light was right and the colors just popped! Whenever I take in a scene or object of beauty, I feel rich. So today held a tiny bit of serendipity for me.
I hope you found beauty and a touch of serendipity in your day, as well!    
All images and text on this blog are copyrighted material, and may be used only with written permission (email is okay) by the author/artist, except where syndication rights have been granted. All other rights reserved. Please visit my primary art site at http://www.lehmann.myexpose.com/gallery if you would like to see my paintings and more of my photography and digital art!

Leaf Aglow

Leaf Aglow - Image c Lynda Lehmann

A single leaf on the road is brilliant in color, almost to the point of iridescence.  The seasons move fast past the windows of our lives, replete with change and dynamism.  I like to look closely, to fill my cup of beauty with the nuances I see every day.
What have you seen today, that gave you joy and inspired your love of life? 

All images and text on this blog are copyrighted material, and may be used only with written permission (email is okay) by the author/artist, except where syndication rights have been granted. All other rights reserved. Please visit my primary art site at http://www.lehmann.myexpose.com/gallery if you would like to see my paintings and more of my photography and digital art!

A Great Big Thank You to Marlena's Designer Scarves

A few posts back, I showed you two of my designs that are available at Designer Scarves by Marlena. Since that time, I've ordered and received one to keep for myself, and I want to share my excitement with you.

I not only want to show you my new product, but I want to take the opportunity to thank Marlena and Robbie again, for not only inviting me aboard, but for producing a gorgeous product.
You can see by my photos how lush and soft the silk is, how vivid and pure the color, and how beautifully it drapes and folds!  I'm totally thrilled with it and can't wait to order more in the future.  
When Marlena first contacted me, I was busy with a lot of projects and obligations, and I felt the pressure of getting some images together for her.  But I'm so glad I did it!  I love her array of "fine silk art-scarves in limited editions."  Not just because my designs are among them but because they make a beautiful accessory for adding color and warmth to a dreary, gray day. And they make gorgeous keepsake and holiday gifts, as well!
What you see in this post are a few of my own photos of one of my scarf designs.  I wanted to show you how it looks flat, and the sheen and gracefulness that it retains when it's folded.
I wish Marlena and Robby all the luck with their shawl and scarf products!  You can check out their catalog here:  My Gallery at Designer Scarves by Marlena

All images and text on this blog are copyrighted material, and may be used only with written permission (email is okay) by the author/artist, except where syndication rights have been granted. All other rights reserved. Please visit my primary art site at http://www.lehmann.myexpose.com/gallery if you would like to see my paintings and more of my photography and digital art!

The Monastery Within

The Monastery Within

Fading into the distance, the arches of the monastery at Imperia Vecchia seem to connote the passage of time. The tiny figure staring out at the far end might symbolize the smallness (or perhaps the significance) of the individual, in the stream of human history.

How do you think about your life?  Do you regard each human life as significant or as just a grain of sand blowing in the wind of the cosmos?  How do you reconcile your own smallness and subjectivity with the vastness and competing interests in the universe? 

My particular accommodation is to look for beauty every day, in nature and in the people I know.  What works for you?  What activities, goals, or values do you turn to when you get the existential "blues"?

All images and text on this blog are copyrighted material, and may be used only with written permission (email is okay) by the author/artist, except where syndication rights have been granted. All other rights reserved. Please visit my primary art site at http://www.lehmann.myexpose.com/gallery if you would like to see my paintings and more of my photography and digital art!

November Flame: The Hope of a Golden Rose

November Flame - Image c Lynda Lehmann

This afternoon I was fortunate to get out for a walk.  The day was brilliant.  Golden with sunshine, mild and dry.  
I came upon this yellow rose and had to photograph it.  I thought it was outstanding for its beauty, still intact and golden in the third week of November.  Although its prime is past, it endures.  The beauty of its soft petals and brilliant color in the gleaming afternoon light made me think about the nature of the life cycle, and loss.  
We're born.  We live.  We die.  But what's in between can shine for us in joy and beauty as we choose our priorities, act out of love, and move through our days.  We all endure misfortune, sadness and loss, but infinite beauty remains to offer comfort and inspire us to move on. 
May your life be bright with the power of creative passions, the solace of natural beauty, lasting love for those present and past, and hope for our individual and collective futures.  This holiday season and always.

All images and text on this blog are copyrighted material, and may be used only with written permission (email is okay) by the author/artist, except where syndication rights have been granted. All other rights reserved. Please visit my primary art site at http://www.lehmann.myexpose.com/gallery if you would like to see my paintings and more of my photography and digital art!

Sea Lace and Sadness

Rimmed in Foam

This has been a sad month for my husband and me.  We have lost three friends in the past four weeks or so.  Three people full of life and wonder and vitality.  Where their energy has gone, no one can comprehend.

  

 I am reminded of the preciousness of life.  We are all buffeted by the tide, often surrounded by circumstances beyond our understanding or control.

Sea Lace

Yet life remains beautiful, offering us moments of beauty and contemplation at unexpected times and in unexpected places.  Thank goodness for those times when visions of natural beauty quiet the mind and heart and give solace.

Steadfast in the Tide

Like the boulder half submerged and pounded by endless waves both large and small, we endure through pain and adversity.

The Jetty Points West

We take comfort in the love we feel for those who have passed.  We know that the love they showed and our love for them, endures in our hearts.  The sun will set, but we know with some certainty, it will rise again. 
To the families of those who have passed, I wish a sense of comfort and peace in knowing that the pain of their loved one has ceased.  They are part of something larger than we.  Even as our hearts swell to bursting with pain we know we are part of the Stream of Humanity in a larger, incomprehensible Eternity. 

All images and text on this blog are copyrighted material, and may be used only with written permission (email is okay) by the author/artist, except where syndication rights have been granted. All other rights reserved. Please visit my primary art site at http://www.lehmann.myexpose.com/gallery if you would like to see my paintings and more of my photography and digital art!

"Magic Lamp" Silk Scarf Designs

I'm excited to report that my "Magic Lamp" images will be among the designs made from my digital paintings, that will become available in the coming weeks for purchase at Designer Scarves by Marlena!


Many thanks to Marlena and Bob Burger for inviting me to add my designs to their catalog of fine wearable silk art!  I love color, so I can't wait to purchase one for myself and wear it.  I'll post the link when my designs go online, so you can see them and give me your opinion.  


These damp, gloomy autumn days can sure use some color, especially after the foliage has turned brown and no longer creates its seasonal magic! 

All images and text on this blog are copyrighted material, and may be used only with written permission by the author/artist, except where syndication rights have been granted. All other rights reserved. Please visit my primary art site www.lehmann.myexpose.com/ if you would like to see my paintings and more of my photography and digital art.

Bold Pattern

Bold Pattern - Image c 2010 Lynda Lehmann

I love pattern and texture.  All around us, a feast of visual material awaits our gaze, intake and processing.  When I keep my eyes and mind open my world is rich with interesting topographies in the most unexpected places, like this grating on the sidewalk in a small Maine town.  I don't know why it's there--whether it was designed for adornment or for a non-slip surface by the roadway--but it captured my eye.  It reminds me very much of African design. It's strong and compelling to look at, and the surface variations make the geometry even more interesting, a street-side iconography both pleasurable and surprising.

Have you noticed any graphic patterns around your neighborhood lately, in building materials or natural objects, that made you stop and stare or run for your camera?

All images and text on this blog are copyrighted material, and may be used only with written permission by the author/artist, except where syndication rights have been granted. All other rights reserved. Please visit my primary art site www.lehmann.myexpose.com/ if you would like to see my paintings and more of my photography and digital art.

The Weave of Life

"Grounded"  -  Image by Lynda Lehmann c 2010

An expression of love for texture as the underpinning of all the Form(s) on Earth.

Observing the details of nature makes us mindful of the wonder and cycles of life, and our own mortality.

THE WEAVE OF LIFE

I move in firmaments of texture

concavities minute as

bumps of binary code

strung like lights in my mind.

I am visual, viewing the universe

in hieroglyphics:

scratches on glass

grass waving in the breeze

silver bangles in lake water.

In and out,

Consciousness swells

before the place

where streams of words

meet Comprehension.

I will die

dissociated from wisdom and certainty

as do all others,

alone on a Rock

where tides flow to Eternity.

Yet still alive,

I choose the arbor path,

a tactile path imbued with inklings of

water, bark, moss, lichen

and wisps of tattered clouds

dancing among treetops,

to savor the likeness of all things

and their interaction:

the Splendid Shining Weave of Life.

******

All comments and constructive criticism gratefully accepted! I don't know anything about poetry--have not studied it since high school--but still I have the compulsion to write it from time to time.

All images and text on this blog are copyrighted material, and may be used only with written permission by the author/artist, except where syndication rights have been granted. All other rights reserved. Please visit my primary art site at  Lynda Lehmann Painting and Photography if you would like to see my paintings and more of my nature photography and digital art.

Paths of Death, A Poem Both Cynical and Hopeful

No Escape - Image c Lynda Lehmann

A passionate few verses about the way we live in our modern world, 

in words both cynical and hopeful...

PATHS OF DEATH 

Venal flawed existence

flouting

preconceived verbalizations...

No thought to language or

aspiration to meaning,

all yearning for truth 

adulterated--politicized--

on Benches of Greed.

Where are the heroes?

Oh, let me sing you.

Do not fling yourself on the altar of

your conscience's death:

mind sacrificed to paltry truths,

enunciations carrying the weight of tin.

Flap not on empty windows

or abandoned domiciles

of Mind-Once-Given

then dubiously relinquished

to Purveyors of Delusion...

those Butchers of Truth who

bleed their fare

over civilization's thin veneer.

Run from the blade to

find your heart

away

from Paths of Death.

c Lynda Lehmann 2010.  All rights reserved.

All images and text on this blog are copyrighted material, and may be used only with written permission by the author/artist, except where syndication rights have been granted. All other rights reserved. Please visit my primary art site www.lehmann.myexpose.com/ if you would like to see my paintings and more of my photography and digital art.

Cascade

Cascade - Image c 2010 Lynda Lehmann Painting and Photography

Autumn leaves ready to fall create a cascade of color, suspended and flapping in the wind like a curtain.  

Natural beauty is a transient state, peaking in its majesty for a short time before changing form and entering a new phase of life cycle that may, perhaps, be equally captivating.

Because beauty is fleeting, like life itself, it becomes all the more precious and poignant.  Life is both precious and poignant, and so we must be thankful for our short domain on Earth.  

To proceed without being mindful of the wonders in life and our individual blessings as well, is to be out of touch and perhaps even arrogant.  I think of friends whose lives have been taken too early, and I know that I must rejoice and be grateful for the gift of every day. 

All images and text on this blog are copyrighted material, and may be used only with written permission by the author/artist, except where syndication rights have been granted. All other rights reserved. Please visit my primary art site www.lehmann.myexpose.com/ if you would like to see my paintings and more of my photography and digital art.

Mystery Flower

Afternoon Light - Image c 2010 Lynda Lehmann

I call this photo "Afternoon Light" because these blossoms looked beautiful and poignant in the late-day fall sunlight.  But I can't figure out what it is.  Someone suggested "Impatiens" but I don't think Impatiens have sticker-type appendages on their leaves, and I think these blossoms are more oval shaped than the petals on Impatiens.  Does anybody have any ideas on this?

On a personal note, I want to thank my friend Denise DiGiovanna for advising me to manually remove the bad code from my posts, instead of fiddling with the template.  It must seem obvious to those of you who know code and are fearless about changing it, but I'm in a different place.  Code-challenged, time-challenged, and domestically-challenged, to boot.  

Well, I guess our struggles are what keep life interesting!

All images and text on this blog are copyrighted material, and may be used only with written permission by the author/artist, except where syndication rights have been granted. All other rights reserved. Please visit my primary art site www.lehmann.myexpose.com/  if you would like to see my paintings and more of my photography and digital art.

A Bee and A Ladybug

A Bee and A Ladybug - Image c 2010 Lynda Lehmann

Nature is always full of surprises.  I shot this image on my walk today.  Looking closely at this patch of Daisies, it seemed strange enough to find a huge bee perched so close to a Ladybug.  But it was a green Ladybug, of all things!  Or maybe she is another kind of beetle that I'm unable to identify. 

If you enlarge the photo, you can see her just to the right of the bee.  Do you have any knowledge on this?  Have I missed the evolution of orange Ladybugs to green? 

Twice the River: An Autumn Encounter with Reflections in Still Water

Twice the River - Image c Lynda Lehmann

This view of a stream in the White Mountain National Forest on a still and sunny afternoon, pulled me in.  The reflections are as mesmerizing as the scene itself, giving one twice the natural beauty to ponder.  Reflections on a still, watery surface bring up many thoughts for me: multi-dimensionality, transience versus permanence, the possibility of parallel universes, the world as patterns of light, the nature of reality. And certainly, the ever-changing countenance of our natural world.  Infinity....

I could lose myself in the deep woods for hours, if not days.  Just being there is for me, a peak experience.  Joyful encounter, there for the taking.  Or should I say: "par-taking," as there is no element of plundering or stealing in my encounter.  Except for taking home photographs, of course, which preserves the experience through time.

To find such beauty and joy: what serendipity!

All images and text on this blog are copyrighted material, and may be used only with written permission by the author/artist, except where syndication rights have been granted. All other rights reserved. Please visit my primary art site www.lehmann.myexpose.com/gallery if you would like to see my paintings and more of my photography and digital art.

Signs of Autumn

Bounty - Image c Lynda Lehmann

The frost is not yet on the pumpkin, but the gourd harvest tells us fall has arrived and makes us feel just a bit festive in anticipation of the holidays. But I'm grateful for nature's incredible variety and bounty, twelve months of the year, and try to always be mindful of it.

View from Goldenrod Hill - Image c Lynda Lehmann

The ferns and grasses are fading in color, drying up and dying back, while goldenrod still holds her head high enough to bring on allergies to ragweed.

Eye of the Sunflower - Image c Lynda Lehmann

This sunflower seems to be peering coyly out from behind her leaves.

Garden on Beach Rocks - Image c 2010 Lynda Lehmann

Vegetation along beaches, fences, and hedgerows, and in fields and meadows has paled, though its remaining color is still a feast for the eye.

Eye of the Sunflower - Image c Lynda Lehmann

This sunflower has lost many of her petals, but she's still commanding and magnificent in the early autumn light.

Looking Beyond the Hill - Image c 2010 Lynda Lehmann

Panoramas of the hills and mountains across an expanse of our Earth are always an inspiration, reminding us that nature's diversity is a precious gift and that it is, after all, Earth who sustains us.  To forget that is a slow, collective suicide.  Let's all celebrate the blessings bestowed upon us in the form of earth, sky, and water, and plants and animals of every ilk.  And by the miracle of birth and Life itself, in all cultures and races of humankind on Earth.

What do you see around you in autumn that makes you feel most inspired and grateful?

ON A PERSONAL NOTE:  I am struggling to maintain some regularity with my art and stock photography, and to find time to get back into the painting process.  As I said in my last post, I will be blogging a little less but I'll certainly NOT forget to visit you and keep in touch!  And, egad, I've just had several HOURS of trouble with the formatting in this post.  I hope I've finally got it!  Is anyone else having trouble with formatting, lately?

All images and text on this blog are copyrighted material, and may be used only with written permission by the author/artist, except where syndication rights have been granted. All other rights reserved. Please visit my primary art site www.lyndalehmann.com if you would like to see my paintings and more of my photography and digital art.

Update: I Miss You All!

Quickening - Image c Lynda Lehmann

I haven't been able to post very often lately, due to family and life events (as well as shifting priorities) and I wanted to update you.  I think that for the time being, I will be committed to posting only about once a month.  I will be returning to painting, as well as concentrating on both art photography and stock photography.  I'm also working on a new pricing system for my prints on Lynda Lehmann Painting and Photography. So my blog will have to be put on the back burner for awhile.

I appreciate all of the wonderful bloggers I've met over these three years, and all our exchanges of not only information,  but our passions, hopes and dreams.  I'll be over to visit each of you as soon as I can, and hope to maintain our contact through the Blogosphere.  If I haven't visited you in awhile, please don't feel that I'm slacking off or losing interest.  I'm just struggling to maintain a balance among my creative goals.  I know I haven't responded to comments as much lately--this is just more evidence of my dilemma.

In the meantime, I won't forget about you, though I'll see you here less often.  My love to all of you who have made my blogging journey more interesting, more meaningful and more fun over all these months.  I can only hope that my posts have, in some small way, enriched your lives, as well.

Like the river, we have to weave and digress to find our best course.

Rocky Path - Image c Lynda Lehmann

Solid Against Liquid - Image c Lynda Lehmann

All images and text on this blog are copyrighted material, and may be used only with written permission by the author/artist, except where syndication rights have been granted. All other rights reserved. Please visit my primary art site www.lyndalehmann.com if you would like to see my paintings and more of my photography and digital art.

Naked in Eden: Robin Easton's Powerful New Book Released This Week!

As many of you know, Robin Easton is one of our most prolific, enthusiastic and passionate bloggers.  She writes with great insight about finding our core selves by opening ourselves to sensory experience through encounter with nature, and growing emotionally and spiritually in the process.

I am in proud possession of a copy of her book, a chronicle of her life-changing experience living in the Australian rain-forest.  I can't wait to read it.  I know every word will resonate with me and echo my own deepest values.  But the book is apparently a great adventure, as well, as my husband will surely attest.  He snatched the book off my desk where it was waiting for me, and hasn't put it down yet.  So I will be second in this household to read it!

Robin's words have power, because she has developed a hard-won "Power of Self" that most of us don't easily attain.  You can read about Robin's journey and book at her site.  You just might want to put in an order at your favorite bookstore after you do!

All images and text on this blog are the copyright of Lynda Lehmann unless otherwise specified, and may be used only with written permission by the author/artist, except where syndication rights have been granted. All other rights reserved. Please visit my primary art site www.lyndalehmann.com if you would like to see my paintings and more of my photography and digital art.

At One and in Harmony: Perceptions from the Middle of the Lake

FLOW


I swam along the narrow, fertile strip of land between two islands today.  
The water was tepid, and the whole world shone in shades of blue and green, reamed with streaming ribbons of silver, turning in the warmth of sunlight. 

The wind whispered through the pines, carrying their perfume.  Golden grasses bowed to the breeze and I floated on my back, 
breathing Earth, Water, Sky into my soul. 

Buoyant with beauty, I'm still floating, hours later....


-- Lynda Lehmann

All images and text on this blog are copyrighted material, and may be used only with written permission by the author/artist, except where syndication rights have been granted. All other rights reserved. Please visit my primary art site www.lyndalehmann.com if you would like to see my paintings and more of my photography and digital art.

Sunsets of the Heart

Clarity of Spirit - Image c Lynda Lehmann

Evening Enchantment - Image c Lynda Lehmann

What do you think of when you see a gorgeous sunset?  Do you feel joyous?  Or do you become a bit wistful, or maybe downright forlorn?  Maybe you feel regrets for the past or hopes for the future.  Or a nameless mix of strong emotions that you would not even try to identify....

For me the latter is the case.  So many attitudes, perceptions, and emotions seem to surface in the face of that glory: a brilliant, flaming sky that signifies the end of another day of the life cycle.  It's hard to separate or put into words what I'm thinking or feeling.  Yet I'm grateful for the inspiration and catharsis of it.

I will think of all my blogging friends when I bear witness to the sunset tonight, and wish for each of you to experience much beauty and peace in your lives.

All images and text on this blog are copyrighted material, and may be used only with written permission by the author/artist, except where syndication rights have been granted. All other rights reserved. Please visit my primary art site www.lyndalehmann.com if you would like to see my paintings and more of my photography and digital art.