The Everglade Montages are digital artworks created by reflecting my abstract nature photography without the use of layering or filter manipulations. The abstract photographs of salt marsh and coastal prairie were captured at Everglades National Park, Florida USA. The contrasting, beautiful yet grotesque textures, patterns and landscapes in this park attract and inspire. The Everglades gives off a hauntingly dark and difficult to describe feeling.
What is this horned god presenting itself in the reflections of nature? Pan, Baphomet and Satan come to mind when trying to identify these spirits. In fact, Pan had entered my mind during our on foot
Everglade exploration. As I peeked into the heavy mangroves and coastal brush looking for crocs, gators and panthers, I wondered what kind of creature, overseer or genius loci may lurk behind the scenes. I imagined that the entity may be best suited with hooves like the miniature key deer of the area. Suddenly the goat like image of Pan entered my mind. Back at home, the coincidence of this horned god showing up in the reflections was startling to me. Interestingly enough, I have had several dreams of Pan before. One of which, my co-workers hunted and killed Pan like an animal. After tragically realizing what they had done, they asked me for a forgiveness which I could not find. Pan is the god of the wild, shepherds, flocks, nature, hunting and music. Pan was a companion of the nymphs whose home, Arcadia, was celebrated as an unspoiled, harmonious wilderness.
The response from these reflections of nature is personally associative. Native American artist, Duncan Pheasant, of Ontario Canada, sees the Manitou Spirit. Manitou is a term used to designate spirit beings among many different Native Americans groups. Manitou Spirit refers to the concept of an interconnected balance between nature and life. Duncan’s beautiful paintings communicate his ancestral spirits and relationship to the land. Friend and artist, Richard Kirk sees a horned god as well as “Warring Trilobites.” A trilobite is a prehistoric exoskeleton arthropod with antennae like horns. Richard’s interests include nature, prehistoric insects and unconscious contents, all of which can be seen in his impressive otherworldly body of work. Artist and friend, Andy Paciorek sees the Genius Loci of the Everglades as part amphibian and part insect. Andy’s quick expressionism style brings forth a plethora of mythological beasts and balancing mystical tales.
Many folks see personalized conscious or unconscious contents within the montages. I believe this is because the reflection of nature’s deep patterns reveal a view into something primal, unseen and unknown. The beckoning of nature’s mystery connects us all.
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Pan,
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The Acadia Montages were created by reflecting my abstract nature photography without the use of layering or filter manipulations. The abstract photographs of interstellar rocks, seaweed and tide pool creatures were captured at Acadia National Park, Maine USA. The reflections were drafted and finessed over a long winter in which the solstice coincided with a total full moon eclipse. I worked diligently with these montages during the solstice event hoping that the rare phenomenon would be influential.
The tide pool montages, which contain the beginnings of advanced planetary life brought forth striking cosmic reflections. Perhaps these are reflected aspects of a naturally occurring grand architect. The spiritual energy within this work reveals a relentless artist trying to balance all areas of life in accordance with nature. Evidence of this struggle lies within the expression of making whole, balanced and enlightened faces out of scarred and once together broken stones.
“One does not become enlightened by imagining figures of light, but by making the darkness conscious.” ~ Carl G. Jung quoted from Alchemical Studies
Encounters with the Jungian archetypes Shadow and Trickster are found within this series. In mythology, folklore and religion, a trickster is a creator god, goddess, spirit, man, woman, joker, truth teller, story teller or anthropomorphic shape-shifting animal who plays tricks or otherwise disobeys normal rules and conventional behavior. The trickster deity breaks the rules of gods or nature (Loki) unintentionally with ultimately positive effects. The appearance of the trickster may link to the changes in human spirituality during a distinctive and transitory time. Tricksters can be cunning or foolish or both; they are often funny, sacred and perform important cultural tasks.
Many thanks to Fantastic Artist Erik Heyninck for introducing me to the Jung quote.
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I have added two new sand galleries each containing 40 abstract nature photographs. The Tybee Sand Gallery is a mix of tidal erosion and dune photography captured on an island in Southern Georgia. The Grayton Sand Dunes Gallery was captured at a state park located in Florida’s Pan Handle. I was intrigued by the forms, palettes and hand drawn look of the Southeast sand.
We visited Tybee Island in Southern Georgia during late winter which is the off season for beach enthusiasts. This was my first walk along the Southeast coast. Walking along the empty beach I followed the brilliant sand patterns of tidal erosion, wind erosion and dunes. The vibrant white and grayscale palette of the sand called out to me. I am ever amazed by the subtle variations within nature throughout our earth.
Grayton State Beach is a 2 mile sliver of coastal sand dune reserve squeezed between an almost complete and total coastal development. Dune ecosystems are endangered yet luckily protected in Florida. We found a short nature trail where I accessed a rarely visited valley of this small preserved dune system. I shot these photographs barefoot and surprisingly the sand patterns were quite hard and cool. Graphite like metaphors of organic structures fantastically presented themselves through the lens.
Even the smallest sliver of pristine sand holds fathomless mysteries.
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I recently added Salt Marsh and Coastal Prairie abstract photography galleries which were captured at Everglades National Park. My wife and I visited the rugged park which is a vast area of protected marshland and coastal mangroves in southern Florida, USA. Upon arrival at the Flamingo campground we found out that a man had gone missing. Unfortunately the man is still yet to be found. For much of the trip my thoughts were torn between hoping to find the man and the unthinkable. Despite the worrisome situation, we found several peaceful days to learn about the ecosystem and hit a number of inspirational trails.
A marsh is an area of low-lying land that is flooded in wet seasons or at high tide, which typically remains waterlogged at all times. The Everglades salt marsh is an attracting equal balance of beauty and grotesque. This layering seems to be created by sun, salt water and decomposing organics such as leaf and coastal grass. The dryer top layer of the marsh reminded me of how paper and parchment is created. The cracked and surreal slashing textures combined with the multi-layered impressionist sea parchment beckoned me.
Inland from the coastal tract is the mostly treeless prairie where grass grows and soil layers appear as a mixture of clay and dirt. Seeing the grass grow through dehydrated and lifeless looking soil was amazing. The patterns in the soil appear petroglyphic and many of the trees in the prairie die with a beauty unlike anything I’ve witnessed. The lifeless trees offer a surprisingly spiritual yet chilling feeling which gravitates towards something which is very much alive.
So much of our trip was a great mixture of darkness and illumination, a small portion of our lives reflecting the endless parts of nature.
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The Everglade Montages are digital artworks created by reflecting my abstract nature photography without the use of layering or filter manipulations. The abstract photographs of salt marsh and coastal prairie were captured at Everglades National Park, Florida USA. The contrasting, beautiful yet grotesque textures, patterns and landscapes in this park attract and inspire. The Everglades gives off a hauntingly dark and difficult to describe feeling.
Everglade exploration. As I peeked into the heavy mangroves and coastal brush looking for crocs, gators and panthers, I wondered what kind of creature, overseer or genius loci may lurk behind the scenes. I imagined that the entity may be best suited with hooves like the miniature key deer of the area. Suddenly the goat like image of Pan entered my mind. Back at home, the coincidence of this horned god showing up in the reflections was startling to me. Interestingly enough, I have had several dreams of Pan before. One of which, my co-workers hunted and killed Pan like an animal. After tragically realizing what they had done, they asked me for a forgiveness which I could not find. Pan is the god of the wild, shepherds, flocks, nature, hunting and music. Pan was a companion of the nymphs whose home, Arcadia, was celebrated as an unspoiled, harmonious wilderness.
The response from these reflections of nature is personally associative. Native American artist, Duncan Pheasant, of Ontario Canada, sees the Manitou Spirit. Manitou is a term used to designate spirit beings among many different Native Americans groups. Manitou Spirit refers to the concept of an interconnected balance between nature and life. Duncan’s beautiful paintings communicate his ancestral spirits and relationship to the land. Friend and artist, Richard Kirk sees a horned god as well as “Warring Trilobites.” A trilobite is a prehistoric exoskeleton arthropod with antennae like horns. Richard’s interests include nature, prehistoric insects and unconscious contents, all of which can be seen in his impressive otherworldly body of work. Artist and friend, Andy Paciorek sees the Genius Loci of the Everglades as part amphibian and part insect. Andy’s quick expressionism style brings forth a plethora of mythological beasts and balancing mystical tales.
