Art

Catching the Light – Part II (the Cats)

/ still a dreamer / 3 Comments

Although spaced much further from the earlier Catching the Light post than I’d intended, here we have, not what … but who … was catching the light.

What is so wonderful about making art is that chance or happy accident that occurs during the creative process. Now we’re not talking about that flash of inspiration which takes us in a new direction in what we’re writing or painting, but the unintended change in direction from what we’d planned. I suppose that could be the same thing in some cases, but right now I’m referring specifically to capturing an unexpected moment in time, and the excitement of it happening in photography. (Hmmmm …. I am suddenly remembering an e-mail filled with moments such as those, but that’s not where I’m going today.)

Back to that warm morning sunlight streaming through the front window. Claude, pictured above, often takes this position in the morning after breakfast and basks somewhere along the back of the sofa, though this particular spot is preferred. I took a bunch of shots of him, always marveling at how elegant and sophisticated he appears in his photographs when in fact, he is one of the goofiest animals I have ever known. I had a nice selection of Claude, the sun worshipper, to choose from.

The unexpected shot came when Gypsy Rose wanted to see what was going on. Happily, I was able to quickly switch gears and capture that moment of cat curiosity. Not much time to adjust camera settings, to account for the darkness of her coat, etc. but then this was about the moment.

Even if we have no intention of taking photographs, our eye can easily be trained to find and appreciate those amazing moments where, in just one second, the view changes. Camera not needed; call it a memory.

Returning to Creativity

/ still a dreamer / 1 Comment

I know I am not alone in having dreams and goals. And just like you, I experience periods of seemingly endless challenges and/or loss in which those dreams are so far on the back burner, the stove isn’t even in the room.

There are numerous ways to find our way back, and one of them that I resurrected this morning is the book The Artist’s Way: A Spiritual Path to Greater Creativity by Julia Cameron. I read the book awhile ago and did a number of the exercises, but I think, right now, checking in with artist/writer/teacher Julia will help me get back on the path to my dream. While I have never stopped being creative, I’ve not had the energy, focus or desire to pursue what I most want to do with it. I’m seeing a spark again, and I want to grow that glimmer.

Feeling stuck artistically? I recommend The Artist’s Way for any creative person who is struggling with getting their show on the road.

Catching the Light

/ still a dreamer

How often have you been in the presence of a small magical moment and wished you had your camera? It doesn’t have to be anything groundbreaking … sometimes just a brief few seconds in which the light was brilliant and soon would pass?

As I enjoyed the luxury of journaling this morning, the sun had risen and was angling its light on the small pool of light blue marbles in the plate on my coffee table. As Spring approaches, I put away fall and winter candles and decor, and had just recently encircled a vanilla pillar candle with a small pool of blue in which this little bluebird could wade. The sharp sunlight was just dancing off these simple blue gems, and both they and the textured glass plate beneath were sparkling.

There was only a small window of time to catch this light before the sun rose further. I couldn’t help but smile broadly at this scintillating vignette … photographing it was just a reminder of how happy we can be when we are truly in the moment. It still never fails to amaze me.

Check back soon and I’ll show you who I captured in this warm, morning light.

Beaded Beauty

/ still a dreamer

Not too long ago, quite by chance, I came across something that I had completely forgotten I had … a beautiful carved and earthy-looking scarab. I can no longer remember where I got the scarab, but looking at the holes drilled in either end, I thought now would be the perfect time to make it into a striking and inexpensive necklace.

I bought some simple black silk-type cord, but then my imagination kicked in and I started thinking of how nicely a few beads would offset the scarab. So my friend and I coordinated our breakfast with a visit to the fabulous bead store in Clinton (NJ), Beads Extraordinaire. And then came the fun … I needed beads with a large hole to accommodate the diameter of the cord I’d brought, and soon found gorgeous copper beads and some shimmery ones in the palest aqua.

Before you knew it, my friend and one of the store personnel, Angela, had additional suggestions, and soon, my scarab and the beads were carefully arranged on a copper silk cord, and skillfully knotted by Angela so I could adjust the length of the necklace. You can see the results here. In addition, She knotted a black leather cord for another piece I had brought along. And the cost? Beyond reasonable.

If in the neighborhood, stop into Beads Extraordinaire, or check out their web site. Linda, the owner, has an unbelievable selection of exquisite beads of every kind, which truly are an artist’s palette of their own. She also has regular trunk sales of art beads from artisans around the country. Suddenly I wanted to bead!  Well, that’s not likely in my life, but I am thinking of something else I’d like to do ….

Listen to Your Heart

/ still a dreamer

This is another beautiful piece of music by the incomparable Mike Rowland, which accompanies a touching film of Emperor Penguins by Ruedi & Priska Abbühl. The music might be classified as New Age or meditation music if that helps you know if you’d like to listen. But the combination of these magnificent animals, so sensitively filmed, with Mike Rowlands music is, well… for me, just heaven … right to the wonderful end — you’ll just have to watch and see.

While working, I listen to music – often iTunes. Today, under the Ambient category in iTunes I listened to a French station – Frequences Relaxation – Music therapy to relax mind, body and spirit. And that it did. Along the way, they played a piece by Mike Rowland and I thought you would enjoy it; I hope you do. I find his music calming and centering. Along these lines, I posted a piece of his work not too long ago,  Enchanted, which also features simply magical visuals.