Abstract: Weekly Photo Challenge

“Everywhere is something which could be beautiful…. Abstract, fine art, nature, landscape and portrait photography.”

Florin Constantinescu

ISLAND SUNSET

This week Ben’s challenge invites us to explore the world of the abstract – representing known objects in a new way. There are times as a photographer when the shape and color of a subject becomes more interesting to the eye than the object itself. In the capture above I’ve reduced the reflection of the clouds on the water as it gently laps the shore to an image that (hopefully) invites further study by the viewer.

CLOUDY SKIES

All good art is abstract in its structure.”

Paul Strand

The basic elements of nature have been cited for centuries as including earth, water, fire and air. They were proposed to explain the nature and complexity of all matter in terms of simpler substances – divisible into infinitely small pieces without changing their nature. To meet this week’s challenge I thought perhaps abstract images of some of these elemental substances would honor them.  In the first capture we see both earth and water. Above, my interpretation of “air”, capturing an interesting configuration of clouds as they are configured by the air around them.

WINDBLOWN GRASSES

“You have to have time to be sorry for yourself to be a good Abstract Expressionist.”

Robert Rauschenberg

Further exploring the idea of “air”, some Scottish grasses, perhaps barley, gently blowing in the breezes for which Scotland is so famous.

MUDDY WATERS

“To abstract in art is to separate certain fundamentals from irrelevant material which surrounds them.”

Ben Shahn

I loved the quote above by Ben Shahn.  The creation of an abstract photograph allows the photographer to withdraw elements of a scene that appeal for many reasons in order to create something entirely new. One of my favorite captures, above, separated the water, grasses and tree trunks of our beautiful marsh from their larger environment. The abstraction showcases the age-old grandeur of the trees contrasted by the ethereal nature of the mosses and flowers around them.

RIVER ROCKS

“Abstract means literally to draw from or separate. In this sense every artist is abstract.”

Richare Diebenkorn

Above, a composition of river rocks that drew my eye last summer in the Colorado mountains. The longer exposure highlights the sweep of the water as it pours over the rocks – reshaping the earth as it moves along its way.

 

Finally, an interesting note on last week’s post.  I opened the post with a quote from Ken Poirot. Imagine my surprise when I noticed that Ken had seen and commented on the post as well as linked to it on his own site. It’s always interesting to see how far our thoughts and words travel as they make their way through the ethernet.  You never know, do you?

 

Tags: weekly photo challenge

• April 23, 2016
• Abstract, Photography
• 84 Comments