15 April 2019
Lens:
Taken in Camera+ and Polamatic. Edited in Snapseed, Stackables and Pixlr.
Exposing the Soul of Nature; Sally W. Donatello 2019 All Rights Reserved
Click onto image to enlarge. Let me know your response to this photomontage. Prints are available upon request.
Pens:
Maybe it’s too bold to title my latest photomontage, “Exposing the Soul of Nature.” How could I possibly discover the inner spirit of Mother Nature? How could I possibly excavate the place where the entire universe blossoms into a source of living light? My immediate reaction to my image was that very space: the imagining of the very essence. To ponder the well that is the heart of our natural universe is to filter through the outer layers to reveal what is never, ever visible. Science can provide most answers, but still there are the mysteries and the yet-to-be discovered.
It’s my illusion, my imagination at the pulse of this abstraction. It could quite possibly be re-imagined tomorrow. And in doing so I carefully and with love put with reverence for nature in my treasure trove of the possible.
In the Lens section is the photomontage in question. After I had completed it, I immediately began to see the parts that make the whole. There are light and dark areas, the positive and negative spaces, the stripping of all that seems to embellish the branches of life. Two photographs–a willowy naked tree and a close-up of snow-covered rocks–create this one symbolic gesture. They combine to unveil an inner sanctum where chaos equals calm and quiet and vice versus, where the chaos equals the tangled mess of life.
The silence exposes nature’s spirit and soul, the very grandeur and omniscience that embraces us as we journey through life. The place where we settle our inner debts, where we come to understand our relationship to the whole.
Note:
Information is knowledge and power. No subject is exempt, and more than ever we need to be informed about global warming and climate change. The New York Times Magazine devoted yesterday’s issue to these serious and life-threatening issues. Earth Day is next week, and it is apt to celebrate and also be alarmed. The Times’ introduction to articles begins with four words as the solution to our planetary woes: “Stop burning greenhouse gases.” Articles range from “The Economist’s Dilemma” to “Hedging Against the Apocalypse” to “What Survival Looks Like After the Oceans Rise.” You can read one of the articles by clicking here.
Lens and Pens by Sally 
Here on our little island sea rise is very much in our thoughts – especially with our local city of Charleston experiencing flooding so much more frequently. Nature is sending her message loud and clear but too few are heeding her warnings.
Tina, yes, I do agree. It must be lovely to live on the water, but also tense at times.
So simple, so complicated. So clear, so confused. We should all look for the soul of the nature…
robert
Lovely to hear from you, thanks so much for your comment.
I love your amazing montage and also Allan’s comment. Last night, we watched David Attenborough’s climate change programme on BBC. It was very scary indeed. I wish everyone would watch it and take it to heart. We only have one Planet Earth.
I do appreciate your response to the photomontage. I’m about to watch the same program. I believe if everyone did their part, each small act becomes a larger one. But we must have a collective effort from across the globe: businesses, corporations and governments. Thanks again.
Nothing wrong with searching for the soul of nature. If more people had done so, maybe earth wouldn’t had been it such a bad state as it is. Your photo shows the intricacy and inherent beauty of mother nature – even when abstracted.
Otto, thanks for your response. It’s an ongoing process.
The result of the process is remarkable. Well said in your “pen”, Sally.
I read the article… speechless. Thank you for the link.
Amy, my pleasure, and I appreciate your thoughtful comment.
A beautiful interpretation, Sally! Wishing you a peaceful and happy Easter 🙂 🙂
Jo, thanks you, and have a lovely holiday exercising your wanderlust.
Beautiful as always Sally!
Nicole, thanks so much.
I perceive the photomontage as quite ethereal in nature, in a way that much of Nature is. Great work, Sally.
I’m humbled. Thank you and enjoy your travels.
Nice work, Sally. I see roots & shoots; what goes up (tree trunks and branches), must go down (in the form of roots). I also like this X-ray effect that you are using. I think that it helps us to focus on the structural components of nature and not be sidetracked by some pretty flower or blossom.
Ω
Allan, I do agree. Thanks for your thoughtful response.
Lovely montage of light and dark. Beautiful!
Patti, thank you for your response.
enjoyed that
illusion 🙂
Thank you so much.
Interesting! Your photo montage resembles an x-ray.
I appreciate your comment. Thanks.