Thank you, Marcel! It’s a good book rich with insights. It’s one of those you can pick up, read a few lines and reflect on the message. I do encourage you to buy if if it comes across your path again.
Impermanence is something I think of a lot in my practice. Something found in the street may be there for days, weeks, or months but often not for years or decades.
The portrait of your father is exceptional!
I’ll need to see if I can get a hold of that book. Thanks for bringing it to my attention.
Thanks, Neil. Yes, I found that to be true. I look through my street photo archives and there are structures that have been torn down or revitalized that it doesn’t look like anything from the photos I took. Isn’t that what makes photography wonderful? Being able to have that record in time. Hopefully, you can get a copy of the book too.
It is indeed. It is one of the reasons, for me at least, that Depardon's Glasgow book is so important. So much of that Glasgow isn't there any more. I'll be on the lookout for the book and hopefully pick it up soon.
Love this, Stella thank you for reminding me of a concept that I've been pursuing since I became a freelance creative over a decade ago. By the way, To Leaves is stunning and I can totally relate to your relationship with your father. Love reading your stories on a Sunday morning!
Thanks for spending some time with me on Sunday. I truly appreciate it! Happy to hear that Two leaves and my reflection today resonated with you. Enjoy the coming week!
Welcome, Alice! It’s good to have you here. And, thank you so much for spending some of your time with me this Sunday. I appreciate it. Your words today encourages me to keep going. If you have the bandwidth, do check out the archives and hope you’ll find some hidden gems there too. Enjoy the coming week and hope to see you here again next Sunday!
Welcome, Alice! It’s good to have you here. And, thank you so much for spending some of your time with me this Sunday. I appreciate it. Your words today encourages me to keep going. If you have the bandwidth, do check out the archives and hope you’ll find some hidden gems there too. Enjoy the coming week and hope to see you here again next Sunday!
When I see the portrait of your father, it evokes a feeling of reverence in me. I feel a respect for what he's endured. His quiet resilience humbles me. Over the years, I've seen it many times in my patients and in elderly friends I have known. I wonder if this feeling is akin to the impulse that urged you to preserve the fragile moment as something uniquely human and holy. Wabi-sabi (to me) is a gentle, sane response to a harsh world. Ultimately it asks: Can death be beautiful? We already know the answer.
I suppose so, Ann. I saw his fragility. I hadn’t had a chance to see him up close and examine the weathered details of his face until I took this photograph.
"On a personal level, wabi-sabi was my entry point to accepting things as they are and aligning myself with the flow of life." Yes! The same is true for me. Also, I have that book! :)
Beautiful pictures - the portrait of your father is especially poignant. ❤️
Welcome to Sundays with Stella! Thank you for being here and chiming in on this post. I’m glad to hear wabi-sabi also resonated with you. Tell me a little about yourself and let me know how you found your way here.
Aww, thanks for welcoming me, Stella! Ann Collins shared your post on Notes, which I immediately had to check out because wabi-sabi has been on my mind a lot. I also write/practice photography, and your words and images drew me right in. They exude a sensitivity and tenderness, which I relate to.
Oh, how wonderful! Thank you for letting me know. I love your Polaroid experiments. I used to do a ton of them back in the day. Polaroid Type 55 was my go-to positive/negative polaroid film. I wish they still made it. So great that you are pursuing analog photography! It's definitely making a comeback, big time.
Yes! I so wish I'd been able to experience Polaroid Type 55. I came to peel-apart film a little late in the game, but I'm mesmerized whenever I see pictures made with those older Polaroid films. Amazing!
One of my favorite things to photograph is flowers, through their various stages, from buds to their final stages. I was first inspired by Irving Penn's book Flowers, back in the 80's. This post made me think of the beauty I see and capture in photos of flower past their prime.
Thank you, Pamela. for chiming in. So good to know someone who also appreciates and captures the various stages of flora and fauna. Funny that you mentioned Mr. Penn. I was fortunate enough to intern with him right after photography school. The Flower series is so consistent with the way he photographs his still life and fashion in color. I love that about his work.
Stella, Penn has always been one of my favorite photographers. How wonderful for you to have interned with him!. I will make a point to post some of my work this week. I started gardens the first year of the pandemic and found great pleasure documenting the various stages of flowers in my gardens, particularly the tulips, zinnias and sunflowers.
Thank you for looking, Tamzin. I’m flying home this week to spend some time with my parents. Last time was in 2019. What a different world that was pre-pandemic.
Terrific post! I've had that book for at least ten years and have yet to open it, somehow associating owning it with knowing what's in it (it happens often to me with books). But now, thanks to your post, I will finally crack it open. :)
Thank you, Alex! I'm glad this post resonated with you. Sometimes, books are that way, just waiting to be read when we're ready. It's now on my bedside table and look through it from time to time.
Great post. Had this books in my hands once, but did not buy it. Maybe I should. Love the portrait you took of your father.
Thank you, Marcel! It’s a good book rich with insights. It’s one of those you can pick up, read a few lines and reflect on the message. I do encourage you to buy if if it comes across your path again.
Impermanence is something I think of a lot in my practice. Something found in the street may be there for days, weeks, or months but often not for years or decades.
The portrait of your father is exceptional!
I’ll need to see if I can get a hold of that book. Thanks for bringing it to my attention.
Thanks, Neil. Yes, I found that to be true. I look through my street photo archives and there are structures that have been torn down or revitalized that it doesn’t look like anything from the photos I took. Isn’t that what makes photography wonderful? Being able to have that record in time. Hopefully, you can get a copy of the book too.
It is indeed. It is one of the reasons, for me at least, that Depardon's Glasgow book is so important. So much of that Glasgow isn't there any more. I'll be on the lookout for the book and hopefully pick it up soon.
Thank you for sharing such a poignant reflection. Leonard Koren wrote a follow-up book. A fascinating thinker --
http://leonardkoren.com/lkwa2.html
Thank you, Daniel. I’ll have to check out that follow up book. Thanks for sharing that with me!
Love this, Stella thank you for reminding me of a concept that I've been pursuing since I became a freelance creative over a decade ago. By the way, To Leaves is stunning and I can totally relate to your relationship with your father. Love reading your stories on a Sunday morning!
Thanks for spending some time with me on Sunday. I truly appreciate it! Happy to hear that Two leaves and my reflection today resonated with you. Enjoy the coming week!
Thank you. This is my first Sunday here and I feel I have found a special place.
Welcome, Alice! It’s good to have you here. And, thank you so much for spending some of your time with me this Sunday. I appreciate it. Your words today encourages me to keep going. If you have the bandwidth, do check out the archives and hope you’ll find some hidden gems there too. Enjoy the coming week and hope to see you here again next Sunday!
Welcome, Alice! It’s good to have you here. And, thank you so much for spending some of your time with me this Sunday. I appreciate it. Your words today encourages me to keep going. If you have the bandwidth, do check out the archives and hope you’ll find some hidden gems there too. Enjoy the coming week and hope to see you here again next Sunday!
This post was beautiful! I loved it. I'm going to track down that Koren book.
The portrait of your father is everything wabi-sabi means to me. Stunning work.
Thank you, Jason! Daniel, on this thread, also provided a link to Koren’s follow up book on Wabi-sabi. Do check it out as well.
I’ll look for both of them!
When I see the portrait of your father, it evokes a feeling of reverence in me. I feel a respect for what he's endured. His quiet resilience humbles me. Over the years, I've seen it many times in my patients and in elderly friends I have known. I wonder if this feeling is akin to the impulse that urged you to preserve the fragile moment as something uniquely human and holy. Wabi-sabi (to me) is a gentle, sane response to a harsh world. Ultimately it asks: Can death be beautiful? We already know the answer.
I suppose so, Ann. I saw his fragility. I hadn’t had a chance to see him up close and examine the weathered details of his face until I took this photograph.
It takes courage to be so present to the moment.
It sure does, Ann.
"On a personal level, wabi-sabi was my entry point to accepting things as they are and aligning myself with the flow of life." Yes! The same is true for me. Also, I have that book! :)
Beautiful pictures - the portrait of your father is especially poignant. ❤️
Welcome to Sundays with Stella! Thank you for being here and chiming in on this post. I’m glad to hear wabi-sabi also resonated with you. Tell me a little about yourself and let me know how you found your way here.
Aww, thanks for welcoming me, Stella! Ann Collins shared your post on Notes, which I immediately had to check out because wabi-sabi has been on my mind a lot. I also write/practice photography, and your words and images drew me right in. They exude a sensitivity and tenderness, which I relate to.
Oh, how wonderful! Thank you for letting me know. I love your Polaroid experiments. I used to do a ton of them back in the day. Polaroid Type 55 was my go-to positive/negative polaroid film. I wish they still made it. So great that you are pursuing analog photography! It's definitely making a comeback, big time.
Yes! I so wish I'd been able to experience Polaroid Type 55. I came to peel-apart film a little late in the game, but I'm mesmerized whenever I see pictures made with those older Polaroid films. Amazing!
One of my favorite things to photograph is flowers, through their various stages, from buds to their final stages. I was first inspired by Irving Penn's book Flowers, back in the 80's. This post made me think of the beauty I see and capture in photos of flower past their prime.
Thank you, Pamela. for chiming in. So good to know someone who also appreciates and captures the various stages of flora and fauna. Funny that you mentioned Mr. Penn. I was fortunate enough to intern with him right after photography school. The Flower series is so consistent with the way he photographs his still life and fashion in color. I love that about his work.
Stella, Penn has always been one of my favorite photographers. How wonderful for you to have interned with him!. I will make a point to post some of my work this week. I started gardens the first year of the pandemic and found great pleasure documenting the various stages of flowers in my gardens, particularly the tulips, zinnias and sunflowers.
The portrait of your father is so beautiful and moving. Very interesting post ❤
Thank you for looking, Tamzin. I’m flying home this week to spend some time with my parents. Last time was in 2019. What a different world that was pre-pandemic.
Terrific post! I've had that book for at least ten years and have yet to open it, somehow associating owning it with knowing what's in it (it happens often to me with books). But now, thanks to your post, I will finally crack it open. :)
Thank you, Alex! I'm glad this post resonated with you. Sometimes, books are that way, just waiting to be read when we're ready. It's now on my bedside table and look through it from time to time.
I'm late to this post, @Stella, and I so appreciate it! I'm drawn to the wabi-sabi - it truly is a different way of seeing. Thank you for sharing.
Thank you for chiming in, Mary Ellen! No worries— I’m so glad you are here and read this post. And, it resonated with you.