February 9, 2012

Gestures on Snow



There hasn't been much snow this winter, so branches and grasses, brambles and twigs, rise above the thin layer of white, gesturing with thin dark lines as across a blank canvas.




A bent stem and its shadow create a diamond on the snow.




A curved branch, covered with circular bumps like little suction cups, moves across and down through space, its curved diagonal countered by a line of light; the subtle texture of snowy ground is soft behind the crisp dark.




The open arms of a branch are partly covered with snow, their generous gesture visible; the straight body points the way for a small animal.




Woodland objects fallen on snow sink into it as though it was a soft featherbed.




A small twig, rising up through its own tiny hole, casts a delicate shadow. Little events such as this touch me; the vulnerability of life, and its resilience, are pictured here.


8 comments:

  1. I love these little gestures in the snow when I find them. thanks for posting, living on the wet coast of Canada I hardly ever get to see them now.

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    2. Altoon--I'm taken by these spare and natural gesture drawings. The movement of the twigs, branches and leaves arcing out of the snow bring to mind the markings of Cy Twombly.

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  2. Thanks, Elaine and Hannah; I'm glad you like these images.
    Hannah, I too thought of various artists, including Japanese calligraphy and Twombly.

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  3. Perhaps this is where calligraphy originated, these sweet, gentle marks of nature. Lovely post, Altoon.

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  4. here is another benefit of doodling...that your eye is tuned in to see nature's drawings and line art against the white of winter. Lovely post!

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