A Quote for the Last Day of August

"Any life, however long
is too short
if the mind is bereft of splendor,
the passions under worked,
the memories sparse,
and the imagination unlit by radiant musings."
Norman Cousins

On View at the Gallery!

Saturday, the September-October show opens at the H. D. Smith Gallery at the Hoogland Art Center where I am a juried artist. This time I have five photographs on display including the one above. The whole process of photography takes on another dimension when one begins to make prints for display that are exhibited for public viewing. While I earned money with my photography years ago when I was a student in seminary and for a year after graduation, I was still surprised that some anonymous person paid a substantial sum for a print in the May-June show. I guess it is a measure, certainly not the only one, of one's skill as a photographer to have someone appreciate your work to such an extent that they are willing to purchase it. Not only was I surprised, but it encouraged me to be more diligent to make the art that I exhibited as high quality as I could make it. For a number of years, I have given away framed photographs as presents and I believe the recipients have appreciated the gifts. And I consider the relationship between giver and receiver enhances the value of the photograph. But to have an unknown stranger pay more than what I expected has increased my awareness of my skill. Being accepted as a juried artist into the Prairie Art Alliance which represents more than 100 truly gifted, diverse artists is wonderfully affirming. And then to sell a photo in the first show was amazing. Now I have carefully prepared five more and I admit I am pleased and proud of what they represent. Maybe they too will go home with someone who is attracted to what I saw and the way I captured that vision. Who knows? It has happened before.

Learn Something!

It was just a personal send-off of encouragement that bid farewell to my children each morning as they left for school. It is pretty easy as a child to learn something new every day. It is absolutely amazing to watch how real that learning ability is with our granddaughter, Madeline. Not yet 15 months old, she is of course the brightest child in all of Tennessee. What a delight it is to witness the knowledge that grows exponentially every time we see her. It may be more stunning to learn something at an age much older than 15 months. But as someone else said, if you are not learning, you are probably dead. So here I am learning about blogging and hyperlinks and information management and tons of other stuff. It is not surprising to my children that Dad is learning something new. My son observed some years ago that Dad seems to always be picking up a new skill. What one is it this year? Well, just take a look. Ain't this a hoot!

Sunset Road 0399

Sunset Road 0399
Originally uploaded by johnhrtlrd

Photographic opportunities are available when least expected. I took my camera with me to have dinner with friends and while we were dining in the restaurant, we had a rather torrential downspour. I suspected that there was a rainbow just outside the door and there was (although not a very attractive setting.) Later I drove to a highway overpass as the sun was setting to take some pictures of the retreating storm clouds and noticed how the sun reflected off the wet pavement, much as it appears on the beach. It was a fun evening.