landscapes

All’s quiet on Christmas eve

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We awoke on Christmas eve to more snow.  In what has become our snowiest December on record, another five or six inches of snow served to freshen the white coating.  After taking care of last-minute shopping and dinner preparations we decided to take some time for ourselves.  A drive into Saint Paul brought us past this lovely neighborhood park, complete with a beautiful tree shimmering with a fresh dusting of snow and  sparkling lights.  The perimeter of the park was marked by luminary candles, and off in the distance were the lights of the Cathedral of Saint Paul where people were making preparations for Midnight Mass.  For the time we were here at the park, this night was still and quiet.  This was the time to appreciate the evening, the beauty we enjoy during winter, and this magical and hopeful season of Christmas.

Morning after the blizzard

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This morning dawned bright and cold.  The air temperature was hovering around zero, the wind was blowing sharply from the north, and the sun was crisp.  Our surroundings in the Twin Cities had changed over the previous 24-hours as we had added 17 inches of snow to the five inches that remained from our last snowfall.  With the forecast on Friday of heavy snow by Saturday, people were busy preparing for the worst.  At 9:00pm Friday night the grocery store parking lot was packed, and all the checkout lines inside were 10 to 12 people deep.  Saturday saw very few people on the roads as the snow fell all day long, with the wind blowing it into drifts that were beautifully artistic, not to mention deep.   I’ve learned that in a snow of this type, you do NOT wait until the snow stops to shovel.  Those people who didn’t begin to shovel until today were faced with snow up to their knees, and that was once they had cleared a way to get out the door.  For all the gray and snowy skies of yesterday, the bright sunshine today was welcome, even if the temperatures stayed only in the single digits.  It is a beautiful white landscape here, and I’m sure it will be a white Christmas in the Twin Cities this year.

Winter’s textures and lines

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The fluffy, powdery snow started falling Friday afternoon and continued throughout the night.  By the time I got up on Saturday morning, we had about seven inches of fluffy, white snow covering the ground and trees.  With no wind, it was beautiful!  I headed over to one of the nearby golf courses.  What I found was a beautiful study in the textures and lines of winter.  The branches of the old oak trees were outlined in white.  Their rugged bark was dusted with snow in places, and was a sharp contrast to the smoothness of the snow on the ground.  And the side light from the sun was adding its own lines and shadows as it cut over the snow at an angle, sometimes creating a bright sparkle as it caught a crystal of ice just right.  What seemed like a simple, nondescript scene became one of interest and beauty, and I found myself marveling at all the little nuances that were there before me.

The yin and yang of autumn

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I spent today outside raking leaves and thinking about the season of autumn.  With a sunny and unseasonably warm day it was delightful to be outside.  And yet I was raking up a yard-full of dry and brittle leaves which have left our trees as skeletons in the landscape.  I was sad that the brilliant colors of fall were now behind us, and I was missing the constant chatter of the geese as they would fly over our house throughout the summer.  And yet I was appreciative of this warm and sunny day, and of the smell of fall that was evident in the air. 

We were in western Minnesota yesterday when this image was taken.  The high clouds created their own patterns in the sky, allowing the sun to filter through at certain angles.  As we drove through this prairie landscape, I was amazed at the fall beauty.  Here in the small town of Cyrus was a small slough with cattails and some trees — a very common sight.  And yet when the sun cut through some of the clouds it brought a most brilliant shimmer and light to the surface of the water.  It’s a common sight in Minnesota, and yet one that I will never grow tired of seeing.

Story Lines: an exhibit of prints and photographs

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I have a new exhibit that’s opening this week in Saint Paul, Minnesota.  Ellen Wold, a photographer and printmaker, and myself will be exhibiting at the Unity Church – Unitarian from November 3rd through the 30th.  The opening reception is this coming Friday night, November 5th, from 6:00 to 9:00pm.  The Unity Church – Unitarian is located at 732 Holly Avenue in Saint Paul.  My photograph that is shown here is titled “Work in a field of lavender” and was made in Sequim, Washington.  The Sequim Lavender Festival is the largest lavender festival in North America and takes place each year in July.  With the warmth and sun of summer and fields of lavender all around, the distinctive scent of the purple landscape permeates the air.  I invite those of you in the vicinity of Saint Paul to come to the opening reception and the exhibit.  Ellen and I would enjoy sharing our art and our stories with you.