Minnesota

Two exhibits in the Twin Cities area

lindastaatsphoto6 Comments

My Midwest,Florabundant_StaatsI’m very happy to tell you about two exhibits that I have in the Twin Cities area.  The first is part of a group exhibit at Hudson Hospital in Hudson, Wisconsin.  My collection of photographs is titled “My Midwest.”  This group of images, including the first photograph above from the Boundary Waters in Minnesota, represent the beauty and diversity that I have found while living in the Midwest.  There will be an artists reception at Hudson Hospital this Friday, February 8th from 6:00 to 8:00pm.  You are welcome to come see my work as well as the work of other artists.  My photographs will be at Hudson Hospital through March 17, 2013.

The second exhibit is at St. Barnabas Lutheran Church in Plymouth, Minnesota.  This collection of images is titled “florabundant” and includes the lower photograph of a gaillardia.  These images all celebrate the color, radiance, and wonder that exists in the floral universe.  In contract to our winter landscape which is presently covered in white and devoid of any other colors right now, this collection is filled with the hues and brightness of spring, summer, autumn, and the whites of winter too.  This exhibit runs through the month of February.

Bringing them home

lindastaatsphoto7 Comments

Bringing them home 7D_0156 _StaatsThe Saint Paul Winter Carnival is in full swing this weekend.  This is the time when we celebrate (and embrace) the cold weather.  There are events ranging from parades to ice carving to snow sculpting to hockey games to outdoor beer gardens to Red Bull Crashed Ice and a sleigh and cutter rally too.  Although we’ve had some serious cold weather this past week our snowfall has been minimal.  But there was enough for the sleighs and horses to be out today.  With temperatures right around freezing and a light snow coming down it seemed like I had been transported to a different era.  Many of the drivers were dressed in period clothing to match their sleighs or wagons, and the horses seemed to enjoy the open space and the snow as they trotted along.  There were one and two-horse sleighs, and a few sleighs pulled by ponies whose feet had to work overtime to cover the same distance as the horses.  This driver and his matched team seemed to be reveling in the event and the weather.  The image made me think that they had been out for a drive and were now headed back to the comfort and warmth of their respective home and barn.

Last game at dusk

lindastaatsphoto2 Comments

Last game at dusk 0103_StaatsYesterday was Hockey Day in Minnesota; one day set aside to celebrate the sport of hockey in the State of Hockey.  It was celebrated with the return of the NHL and the Minnesota Wild’s game.  The University of Minnesota Golden Gophers played, high school teams across the state played (including some games held outside), and the US Pond Hockey Championship was ongoing too.  Six years ago the Pond Hockey Championship was started to celebrate the joy of hockey “the way nature intended” on a lake in Minneapolis.  The weather was mild on Friday and Saturday morning, but a front moved through Saturday afternoon with the temperatures plummeting from 37 to 11 degrees in a matter of hours, and the winds picked up until they were howling at 20+ mph.  No worries though…the games went on.  We wandered down to Lake Nokomis around 5:30pm to take in the energy and the excitement as the last games of the day were finishing just after dusk.  The sky was dark with the last blush of sunset on the far horizon, the lights were turned on for the hockey rinks on the lake, and the wind was blowing loose snow across the ice.  But all was right in Minnesota, and the cold was just another reason to revel in the winter weather and appreciate what is means to be in the State of Hockey.

Morning frost

lindastaatsphoto1 Comment

Morning frost PS2341_StaatsI looked out the window this morning and saw crystal-like snowflakes dancing in the sunlight.  They sparkled and glistened as they drifted to the ground.  It reminded me of this image from the past week.  Our nights have been cold, and the other morning I went out to my car to go to work; insert key, start engine, and wait for the car to warm up.  But as I sat in the driver’s seat I looked out the front windshield and “saw” the most beautiful sight.  The morning’s frost had settled on the glass, and as the light of the day (and the street lamp) shined through the window it was all refracted through the crystals of frost.  The trees became abstract and a beautiful mosaic was created with the light and the early morning colors of the sky.

Savoring the winter sunset

lindastaatsphoto4 Comments

Savoring the winter sunset 0028_StaatsMinnesotans are happy that we are having a winter!  The temperatures have remained below freezing and we couldn’t be happier!  Yes, it may sound strange to those living in warmer and more temperate climates that we’re glad it’s cold, but with this more “normal” winter weather we can get out and enjoy the activities that make winter memorable.  The neighborhood ice rinks have hockey games at night, the skating rinks are filled with graceful skaters and those that aspire to their grace.  The golf courses are filled with cross-country skiers and snowshoers, and our lakes are open for fishing again.  All it takes is a trip out onto the ice, either on foot or by car or truck (if the ice is thick enough), something to drill a hole in the ice, a line to drop through the hole, and the patience and luck to be successful.  And last night there was a plethora of hopeful people outside ice fishing on a nearby lake.  It also helped that there was a winter sunset that put on a beautiful display, as if beckoning us out to savor the winter weather and this sunset.