Monday, June 29, 2009

Water Study (Part 2), and a New Series on Influential Artists

As promised in my previous Water Study post, here is another, completely different interpretation of the same subject, this time in color. Since it was a "local" subject and I was in no hurry, it was possible to spend more time than I normally might working a very limited area, trying to construct as many variations as possible from this little area of falls. It's not just one grand fall, but a series of cascades wandering all around the rocks and trees below a mountain lake, so there are certainly many different possibilities to be had. This type of "intimate landscape" leads me into a new subject I've been mulling over for a while: I would like to give mention to some of the greats of photography (and art) that have shaped my vision, as well as a few of the contemporary people whose work I admire. So I'm going to occasionally steer you to some different sites that I feel are worth visiting if you are at all interested in the masters that have paved the road to where we are today, or some current artists that are very worthy of attention.
Some of the people I have in mind are very well documented and represented on the web; at least one that I want to refer to is surprisingly hard to find, so I'll start with an easy one because I found an excellent website covering his work: Eliot Porter. Probably the first great color landscape photographer, his show,"Intimate Landscapes" in 1980 was the first one-man show ever of color photography at New York's Metropolitan Museum and he was one of the first masters to catch my imagination during my younger days in art school. I won't repeat a lot of info about him here, because this website is concise and full of samples.
I'll mention others as they come to mind, or seem to tie in with my own examples; probably mostly photographers, but some other types of artists too... as well as some fellow bloggers that I have found since I started doing this blog. I know that with photography in particular, lots of people have been taken up in a sudden fascination on the subject and haven't necessarily looked into the history of what got us here, so I hope I can turn a few of you on to some great work that might inspire you even further. And I would certainly love to hear back from anyone who has their own favorite masters or contemporaries that they would like to share.

20 comments:

Meghann said...

Beautiful, ghostly falls :)

betchai said...

what a beautiful and captivating shot of the waterfall. the photography of Eliot Porter really brings so much depth and meaning, like you, his bringing art masterpieces through his lens.

Unknown said...

Mark,

First thank you for the link to Eliot Porter. I've just spent a nice time on that site.

About the cascade, i really prefer this one to the b+w version. I don't really know why, perharps because of the green moss and perharps also because of the composition.

Gary Keimig said...

Great blog. Interesting about Everet in the southern Utah desert. I had read about him in the past but had not heard about his body being discovered. Very interesting. I have run around that part of the country a little and find it absolutely fascinating. The Escalante is wonderful country.

storybeader said...

it looks like a beautiful area. You are so lucky to have it near. Great action piece!

Mark Alan Meader said...

Thanks Meghann.. always glad to hear your comments.

Betchai: Thanks and welcome back from your latest adventure.. looks like we will be seeing some really interesting places soon. Glad you enjoyed the link.

Patrick: I'm sure you can really appreciate Porter's work, especially considering when and how it was done. And, I kind of thought you would prefer the color image... thanks for your input.

Gary: thanks much for stopping by and very happy to make your acquaintance.. your painting is exceptional and I will be by to visit often. I think we like the same kind of places. Great stuff.

Deb: thanks.. I am pretty lucky to live around here where we have just about everything, environment-wise.

Amy Lilley Designs said...

I LOVE the contrast of the soft, soft, softness of the falls, vs. hardness of the rocks...even tho they are rounded w/ moss growing on them, and they look slippery...the photo makes the water almost cloud like...beautiful...

donnie said...

beautiful depth and dimension - just the perfect shutter speed to capture the flow and intricacies

Anonymous said...

Wow these are amazing photos! Stunning.

JaviZ said...

"Milky" effect works wonders here!

Earth Shepherd said...

I'm loving your blog. Excellent photography. Looking forward to seeing more.

Mark Alan Meader said...

Amy, Donnie: Good to hear from both of you.. thanks a lot.

Grace.. don't think I've heard from you before.. thanks and welcome.

Javier: Good to meet you.. I checked out your work.. very nice. Will definitely put you on my "reading list". Thanks for your comments.

Janae: Same to you.. found your blog through BlogCatalog. Nice work. I've been lucky making some interesting acquaintances this week!

Unknown said...

What a gorgeous shot!


Sherry at EX Marks the Spot

Lynda Lehmann said...

It's a beautiful, sensuous photo, Mark!

I'll have to check out the Porter website. Thanks for the interesting post.

Where did you go to school?

Ashrays said...

Often the intimate can be far better, with more atmosphere than the larger "grandiose" subject nice shot sir!

I'm one of the guilty not knowing the history and you can't know where your going until you know where you have been!

Unknown said...

Beautiful waterfall. I love this effect and this image is just really peaceful.

Mark Alan Meader said...

Sherry: Thanks for visiting.

Lynda: Thanks for the comment and do check out that site if you get a chance. Where did I attend school?.. The Art Institute in Boston. Don't ask me when.. but let's just say way before the days of desktop computers, digital cameras and cel phones.. I learned to do everything "the hard way" but some of those skills still serve me well:)

Mook; Yeah.. sometimes the "Big Picture" just isn't meant to be, but you can usually come up with something if you look at things in alternative ways. You would enjoy Porter's work.. check it out.

Chrissy: Thanks.. good to hear from you. Sorry for the loss of your friend, BTW.

I haven't had much time this last week to visit around my usual haunts or even work on my own
posts.. sorry! Trying to keep caught up with work so I can get away for a shooting adventure in the next week or two.

Erik said...

Great post. Thanks for the links. I find beauty and insight when I visit. Thanks for all of your efforts.

addicted to life said...

wow this waterfall is amazing :) i wanna be there right now!

Ashley said...

This is a great shot of a waterfall! I have been trying to learn how to get the water to look like that in my shots but haven't been able to do so yet!! I will definitely keep trying though. I love this shot!