Compromised Surface

Compromised Surface - Image c 2012 Lynda Lehmann

Wonderful tactile surfaces and textures abound in our everyday reality. Not only do they tell something of the history behind the weathered object, they stand on their own as intriguing abstractions and objects of art.  This particular surface evokes a reflective winter lake landscape for me. What do you see in it, besides scratched and peeling paint and rust?


Note: You can click on each photo to see a larger version. 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 sites listed in my sidebar if you would like to see my paintings and more of my photography and digital art, or make a purchase. 

Lilliputian Dream

Lilliputian Dream - Image c Lynda Lehmann

Conglomerate - Image c Lynda Lehmann

Amber and Green - Image c Lynda Lehmann

I try to think outside the box. One way to do this is to envision myself living in an "alien" place, a locale or fictitious setting with which I'm not at all familiar in real life. Another way is to envision myself being of another scale, as big as Mt. Everest or as tiny as a Lilliputian. By doing this mental exercise I stimulate my imagination and refresh my perspective on my own little life in the context of the universe.

The photos above give us a glimpse towards the microcosm. The top one can be seen as a lush landscape of sunlit moss and woody furrows, that would be a challenge for any Lilliputian to navigate. The middle photo presents a rocky terrain of steep and foreboding cliffs and crags. The bottom image could represent a rough terrain of ruts and crevices covered with forest, that would also require great skill for any homunculus to cross.

For those of us who live in the United States, it's Thanksgiving week, time to revel in the joy of family, friends, and luscious meals. But I'm of the mind to give thanks every day. I cherish all of nature, the large and the small, the majestic and the mild, to be savored with all my senses. Okay, I don't mean I'm going to literally "taste" bark and lichen, lol.... But I rejoice in the splendor of tiny details I see around me all the time. From bark, pebbles, moss and lichen, to a pine needle resting precariously on a boulder or some other natural surface whose relative mass and solidity contrast its slight and attenuated form.

All through the year, as well as during Thanksgiving week, I give thanks for all of it: the holiday rituals and the whole world that is my oyster. I wish you joy and good fortune this holiday week. And more than that, may your senses be replete every day of the year.

All video and text copyright Lynda Lehmann. All rights reserved.

If you would like to view 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.

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.

Variations on the Surface of a Stump, Between Light and Shadow, Etched by Time

Etched by Time

Between Light and Shadow

Variations on the Surface of a Stump

I enjoy close views of nature's colors and patterns. These intimate views are like little secrets, waiting to reveal themselves to open eyes. I never realized until I read one of Robert Genn's articles at The Painters Keys site, on the art of Miksang, that this art form had a name . This is how the art of Miksang is defined by Wikipedia:

Miksang is a Tibetan word meaning "good eye" and represents a form of contemplative photography based on the Dharma Art teachings of Chögyam Trungpa, in which the eye is in synchronisation with the contemplative mind. The result of this particular perception of the world, combined with photography, produces a peculiar and open way of seeing the world. Miksang pictures tend to bring the observer back into the original contemplation state of the author of the picture. The pictures can bring one back to a purer perception of reality that is often neglected. Miksang involves nothing fancy, no special setup; only a visual capture, in the proper state of mind, of everyday's reality.[1]

I didn't know, until I read Mr. Genn's article, that I had been practicing Miksang for most of my life, even in my childhood days when I ran in the open fields and waded in the bubbling streams of rural Pennsylvania! It seems like I've always been fascinated by the textures of rocks, sea shells, flowing streams, snowflakes, weathered man-made surfaces, ropes and fibers, desert sands, etc. I could go on and on about the things that excite me visually. What are some of your favorites?

I dedicate this post to my fellow bloggers whose love of nature feeds my own, and gives me courage. You know who you are!

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.

Layers

Texture is the most enduring and ubiquitous underpinning of form:...certainly a calming, meditative and appealing world for both the eye and mind.

Texture is everywhere we look, and nature's paintbrush is capable of stunning feats. I hope you enjoy the rough-hewn beauty of tree bark as much as I do.

Image and text c Lynda Lehmann.

Light Through Time

Time will not wait, but takes its toll.

Boughs break, rivers thin

and bend their banks,

our faces fade and line.

Seasons change with paradigms,

our knowledge never sure.

Yet sunlight melds through ages past

while seas still lick the shore.

Stories spill

in textured light,

paint peals past eon's

weather and woe,

while we seek answers

not attained.

So time's impassive

march must go.

Image and text c 2008 Lynda Lehmann. All rights reserved.

Thank you, Blogging Friends, for reading my poem. Though I know little of writing poetry, I'm attempting to compose pieces that relate to my images and at the same time have some meaning. I hope they will resonate on a tiny note of truth for my readers. I welcome your feedback and discussion!