Only a few days left. If you haven’t gotten the opportunity to check out Missing Nature at the Parthenon in downtown Nashville’s Centennial park make plans to stop by. The show features more than 20 prints some of which are 6 foot canvas pieces. The show ends on September the 10th. The response to the show has been amazing. Our thanks goes out to you all. We have received so many wonderful reviews in the media, and countless warm comments and emails. We are very grateful for each one.
There are so many fascinating aspects to nature and to fine art nature photography. One of the most rewarding is discovery of images in unexpected places. Recently, while creating photographs of a magnificent waterfall in California, I took a break and looked at the trees behind me. In a small area of peeling bark I found an abstract as exciting as the waterfall itself. Nature reveals her beauty in many ways. It is these serendipitous moments that keep me out there shooting year after year.
Nature art heals. We all know this intuitively but now scientific evidence is accumulating to support these claims.
Thousands of years ago, the ancient Greeks knew it and designed temples that surrounded patients with nature, music, and art to restore harmony and promote healing. A number of studies have presented strong evidence that even a few minutes of contact with nature can significantly decrease stress, reduce anger and fear, and increase pleasant feelings. This calming effect can be achieved by providing views to the outside, interior gardens or aquariums, or artwork with a nature theme..
As a fine art nature photographer I find this particularly interesting and rewarding. When I have been in the field for several days I come back exhausted but renewed from my experience in the outdoors. The fact that viewing my art can impart this feeling of renewal and healing to others is satisfying.
Sources:
Parsons R, Hartig T. Environmental Psycholphysiology. In Handbook of Psychophysiology, 2nd ed. New York: Cambridge University Press;2000:815-46.
Van den Berg A, Koole SL, Van der Wulp NY. Environmental preference and restoration: how are they related? J Environ Psychol. 2003;23(2):135-46.
Today we are announcing a brand new addition to the website! The new gallery will be a collection of cloud images. Images of clouds and skies can be healing and peaceful as well as giving a generally more uplifting and inspired mood to a space. You can view the gallery by clicking HERE
There is arguably no subject that has been photographed more than nature. The question remains, with all of the millions of nature images that have already been created, is it possible to make an image of nature that is refreshing and new and yet still appeals to our desire for art and beauty? The answer to that question has been part of the motivation I feel to keep returning to the wilderness in search of new ways to see the natural world. For me the real joy and challenge of my journey as a fine art nature photographer has always been the never ending discovery of new ways to reveal the beauty of Nature. To see in a new way and to share that vision in a way that uplifts and inspires people, that is my mission.
What is Wabi-Sabi and what does it have to do with my photography? Wabi-Sabi describes a Japanese aesthetic of art and living.
One of the best explanations I have seen for the term is:
“Wabi is a feeling of loneliness or solitude, reflecting a sense of nonattachment and appreciation for the spontaneous unfolding of circumstances. It is like the quiet that comes from a winter snowfall, where all the sounds are hushed and stillness envelops everything. Sabi is the suchness of ordinary objects, the basic, unmistakable uniqueness of a thing in and of itself.”
From ” The Zen of Creativity”
John Daido Loori
A few years ago a large number of my images were chosen by a client to be hung in an upscale hotel. While I was printing the images I marveled at how the image choices seemed to have picked up a theme that ran through my images. This was not a theme that I was aware of as I was creating the photographs in the field. I was so fascinated that my client had seen this thread that ran through my imagery that I was unaware of, that I couldn’t resist writing her and telling her how much I appreciated her “getting it”.
Her response was “I love your work it is so Wabi-Sabi!” I immediately began researching on the internet and at bookstores. I ended up reading and learning about a Japanese aesthetic which had permeated my fine art photography for years without even being aware of it.
While still on my trip to Mississippi I noticed a pattern of reeds against the reflections of the sky in a pond.
Clouds and sky reflected in water with abstract reeds and grasses #041808_215crv2
It reminded me of a Japanese painting. I began setting up my camera and tripod as if in a trance. Suddenly, while I looked through the lens of my camera I was a child again….watching my father (a commercial artist) painting with brush and ink stone (Sumi-e) on watercolor paper. Tears welled up in my eyes. He died long ago. Would he be proud of my work as a photographer. Am I still trying to please him? I framed image after image and this became the basis for an entirely new collection of images which can be found in the Zen Gallery on my site.
Clouds and sky reflected in water with abstract reeds and grasses #041708_499v2
Concern for the environment goes hand in hand with being a photographic artist that specializes in nature. Therefore, I was eager to try the new Bamboo paper that Hahnemule introduced recently as a paper that has been produced in a more eco-friendly fashion.
Their website states:
“Bamboo 290 gsm
Is the first fine art inkjet paper that consists of approx. 90% fibres from highly renewable bamboo grass and whose production is therefore very eco-friendly.”
I have been using the Hahnemule Bamboo paper to make some stunning prints over the last few months. I really like the texture and warm glow that the paper imparts to my photographs.The paper is recyclable and produced in a way that leaves less of a footprint on the environment and it is beautiful.
I say it is a step in the right direction.
If you are working on a project that you feel might benefit from this paper and you would like to get a sample please contact susan@byronjorjorian.com
