Holidays

I was hopeful that I'd have a little sun this morning as I walked the beach. When I woke up this morning at 6 am I could see stars out my bedroom window, but alas, the clouds moved in and I was forced to make my own sunshine. That's a good thing in some ways. When you are challenged to add some excitement to a gray day your creativity kicks in. It seems that a duffer decided to smack a bucket of balls into the bay so I collected his washed up trash and play with it on the pebbly back dune area at the park. A Petoskey stone and a single Christmas bulb found their way into the mix as well. A interesting mix of the natural and man made.
Anyway, Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year from the Michigan Artisan.
Blessings and peace to you!

Bob

Looking Back

Sorry that it has been awhile since I posted but it's just that time of year — plenty to do and not enough time to do it. I should be out getting images of the winter wonderland but instead I wimped out and sat in my cozy office and started looking through bunches of old work. It's amazing how, when looking back, you begin to see things that you totally missed when the images were fresh. I'm convinced that distancing yourself a little (time-wise) from your work is often a good thing. When looking at images just a couple hours after the shoot I think your impressions are clouded by expectations of how those images should look. I certainly don't want to clear emotion from my work — it's important, but there is this block of thought about what I expected to create and what I was really able to capture that hampers good creative thought. I have a hard time explaining it. Maybe I need a little distance from this thought.
Anyway, I looked way back to my experience at Petrified Forest to put together this new piece from that experience. It was the last evening that I was there. I found this incredible valley not far off the main road and shot away. Colors, textures, drama — I like this piece.

Little Things

Why does a small wildflower bloom in the middle of November? Walking through the back dunes of Petoskey State Park a couple days ago I came across a harebell blooming on the side of a dune. Maybe there was just enough heat energy left in the sand to encourage the plant to produce one more bloom. The insects that may pollinate such a plant are certainly long gone. So you may say that this bloom is wasted. But it wasn't wasted on me. I felt like it was just there for me to enjoy — an audience of one.

And speaking of singularity, This one seed pod floated along the shore and somehow I felt obligated to pick it up and place it on a small piece of driftwood just to honor it's travels — a long way from mother maple. I'm sure by now it has been picked up by the wind and planted itself along one of the many streams that flow into Little Traverse Bay. Someday my grandson will play in its branches.

Capital Reception

My wife Manette and I headed down to Lansing on Monday for a reception at the Governor's residence, honoring those artists whose works were selected to decorate the residence for the coming year. I wasn't quite sure what to expect — if it would be just a "photo-op" with the Governor, Jennifer Grandholm, and a few hors d'oeuvres — or something more. As it turned out, it was more. And for a guy who's not big on the social scene it was very enjoyable. Governor Grandholm and her husband Daniel Mulhern hung around for a while and talked about how they enjoyed supporting Michigan artists. They gave each artist the opportunity to introduce themselves and their art and where their work was located in the residence. And what was especially fun was getting to know a few fellow artists. I'd like to thank the Governor for her support of the arts and taking some time out of her busy schedule to host this reception.


So enough with the party scene. As my wife will attest, I have this fundamental need to arrive at destinations way earlier than is necessary. Not sure what gene-pool that came from, but I'm sure I could blame some ancestor for this timely trait. Anyway, we were in Lansing a wee bit early so I thought, why not head to the capitol building and snoop around. So we did, and it was really an impressive place. And for a photographer it was good timing since the place was pretty well deserted —just one small tour group. I laid my camera on the floor, lens side up, and took a few pics of the dome above. The subjects don't fall into the nature catagory I so dearly love, but you need some new-ness in the mix once in awhile. I had fun capturing these images and that's key to learning and growing as an artist.

The House of Representatives

Warm Days and Coldplay

No sooner do I talk about how depressing November can be than we have a string of beautiful warm days. I think the Lord really has a sense of humor. So I got out here a few times and took advantage of the weather and I think I made a few respectable images. See what you think.
And amidst all the great weather I had an experience that I haven't had since my college days (I won't say how long ago that was). I headed to the Palace at Auburn Hills on Monday evening for a Coldplay concert. I'll admit it wasn't my idea. It all started when my college freshman daughter wanted desperately to attend, and being the good Dad that I was I decided it was OK to go as long a I went along. And guess what? I really enjoyed it! In fact I've had their songs running through my brain all week. And now that I look at the images I've created this past week I'm thinking that they reflect the music. So enjoy my Coldplay art. By-the-way I've titled the top image "Yellow." If you're one of us Coldplay groupies you'll appreciate that.

Stripped Away

There are few leaves left on the trees here in Petoskey. A stiff northern wind has made sure of that. For many, it is a depressing time of the year. The colors are gone and the snow has yet to brighten the landscape. And I have to admit that I end up spending more time indoors than is typical — a good time to catch up on my blog.
But I do relish a weather challenge and Sunday afternoon was perfect — rain, hail, thunder, lightening, and occasionally the sun broke through. I headed just a mile down the road to a nature conservancy. Deep into the woods, the trail became a boardwalk as it crossed soft ground near a stream. Plastered to the walk were leaves in various patterns. Most folks would overlook them but I enjoyed the intensity of the wet, earthy, colors and the simplicity of their interaction on the easel of the boardwalk. As I worked on my images Sunday evening I was reminded of a story my pastor had used the previous Sunday. He talked about the experiences of a family in German occupied Netherlands in WW2. Their incredible story was made known through a book written by Corrie ten Boom called The Hiding Place. Corrie and most of her family ended up spending time in German concentration camps for being part of the underground and hiding Jews in their home. Four of the ten Booms died in the camps but Corrie survived. As you can imagine her return home at the war's end was bittersweet — very happy to be home but missing her family. One would think that on looking back at her time in the camps Corrie would have nothing but feelings of horror and despair but that was not the case. There was a part of her experience in the camps that she actually missed. In the camps, life was minimal — barely enough of the essentials to survive. But in that place where life was stripped down to almost nothing, there was a moment by moment reliance on God. The spiritual life in the camp was very strong.
So now, when I see a bare tree and a few decaying leaves on the ground I think of what is really important in life — certainly not my things — not even my camera or computer :) — it's my walk with my Savior and my God.

Alligator Hill

I was able to stop at Sleeping Bear on my way back from downstate on Saturday. It was your typical change-in-seasons day in Michigan — a driving rain one minute — a burst of sunshine the next. I headed down the road to my automatic first stop on any Sleeping Bear visit — Sleeping Bear Point, but halfway there I did an about face and decided that I'd take the stroll up Alligator Hill — something I hadn't done in several years. As I pulled in the trailhead parking lot the clouds parted and I couldn't get on my hike fast enough.
Autumn seems to be the hardest time of year for me to photograph. It's like there is so much going on that it's hard to distill my thoughts about what I'm experiencing. I took lots of pics on my hike but the couple I chose to display here are the most successful at capturing the day.

Hunting Camp

I got lost in the woods and I must have ended up on someone's private property so forgive me, whoever you are, if this is your special place in the woods, but I couldn't resist taking some pics of this metalic beauty in this natural setting. I didn't disturb anything — I promise.

Autumn Light

Autumn colors are near their peak here in Northern Michigan. Maybe I find the display overwhelming so I avoid the woods. But I also think that there is a special light to Autumn that gets lost, and that light takes center stage where the colors are less intense. So I'm at the beach again. I guess I'll come up with any excuse to walk the beach.

Sturgeon Bay

I wasn't aware that it was international beach cleanup day or I would have left my camera at home and brought a few garbage bags. I was more than a mile from the parking area, looking for images, when I ran into a nice couple with bag and clipboard in hand, who let me know about their reason for hiking this lonely stretch of sand. As a frequent beach wanderer I'm well aware of the "junk" that accumulates along the shore. Next year I'll be a part of the pick-up party.
As for this year, All I can do is share a couple images of this beautiful morning and hope that you appreciate this special place and others like it. Please do your best to keep it beautiful.

Beach Berries

It was a rainy day in Petoskey on Sunday — as it was in much of the midwest. It wasn't a "beach" day in the ordinary swimmer and sunbather sense, but foul weather only serves as a challenge to my creative spirit, so for me it was a beach day. I put the all-weather cover on my camera and headed for the State Park. On my ten minute drive I was conceptualizing the images — the concentric ring patterns left by raindrops as they hit the surface of the small backwater pools or beads of water sliding down slender blades of beach grasses.
You would think that my artistic genes would tell me to explore some new stretch of the park, but here I was making my way along the same old stretch of Little Traverse Bay. It was a surprisingly pleasant stroll. The wet, firm, sand lessened the walking resistance and the rain was light. I figured I had at least an hour before my jacket fabric would begin to saturate and chill me.

At my usual turn-around point I make a slight detour inland to a bank of vegetation that held a mound of dark soil. It was the deep red leaves that first drew my attention — then the fleabane and the berries. The water on the leaves added color saturation and some highlights for some excitement. It wasn't what I imagined I'd be taking pictures of but the unexpected is good creative nurishment. I saw a very rich tapestry. What do you see?

At Sleeping Bear Again

Well, it seems I never get enough of the Sleeping Bear. I was up on Sleeping Bear Point on two consecutive mornings this past weekend and the atmosphere couldn't have been much more different on those mornings. Morning one was heavy with fog and dew.






















Thousands of spider webs that are all but invisible in dry conditions glowed with strings of water droplets. The fog hung in the valleys creating a strong depth to the landscape. The heavy seed heads bent the dune grasses in graceful arcs as if they were rolling waves.



Morning two was clear and bright with a gentle warm breeze. I found myself just wanting to sit and meditate rather than work at creating art. I sat at the top of a dune and just observed, thanking God for an incredible place to be at a glorious moment.

If you are ever at the dunes don't miss the opportunity to be up on Sleeping Bear Point at sunrise. I know it's not your favorite thing to do on vacation — getting up so early, but it is worth it!

Governor's Residence Artist

I received word today that two of my artworks are to be exhibited in the Michigan Governor's residence for a year (2008–2009). It's a wonderful honor. In case you don't get the opportunity to visit the Governor of Michigan at her home in the next year, I'll share with you the two images that will hang in her home. The winter scene is "Sanctuary." The Scene from the woods is "Crowded"

Back From Algonquin

Took a few hikes in Algonquin Provincial Park. I highly recommend the Spruce Bog Trail —a short but fascinating track through a beautiful series of bogs. Pitcher plants, Sun dews, Water Lilies and lots of other photo ops.