Kat Eye Studio

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Creating the Sun

It’s summer again, and I’m so glad. For about a week there, it wasn’t summer around here. A lot of rain and grey skies; muddy trails and wet dog. I wanted to wear my summer clothes – not my rain jacket – but didn’t have much of a choice.

I did have a choice in what I created, though, so I created my own personal sunshine through my art. Summer-y flowers and leaves in bright colors filled the bill. I could change my mood with a choice of brilliant oranges and reds, like this one…

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…or lemon yellow and lime green, like this image “Looking Up.” Ahhhh, hello sun.

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My husband complained that some of the colors were too bright. They hurt his eyes.

That sounds just about perfect to me. If they are too bright for you, just put on your sunglasses. I’ve achieved my goal, and created some sun.

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Tis the Season

It is the season of beginnings, with new growth in a bright spring green. The season of glorious sunshine one day and pouring rain the next week.

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And it’s the season of endings, as graduates finish up their schooling and move onto the next phase of life.

I’m off to Colorado today with my pink suitcase in tow, heading to attend my nephew’s high school graduation tomorrow and celebrations with my family over the weekend.

I’m a bit in shock that I have a nephew graduating. That my younger sister will have a kid in college next year. Oh my. So many of the people I know are well beyond this place, but it’s a threshold that, for my family, pushes my generation into a new phase of life. One with adult children and empty nests. I can’t quite wrap my head around it. I’m not ready for it.

But off I go… because it’s happening whether I’m ready or not. ‘Tis the season!

Oh, and don’t forget: The May Photo-Heart Connection link up will open on Saturday, June 1. That, at least, I am ready for!

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Breathe Deep

It is interesting how realization comes.

Sometimes, a realization blindsides you, leaving you surprised and blinking in the bright light. Unable to move for a moment or two, from the shock of it.

Other times, a realization comes upon you as a gentle knowing. There is a subtle nod of “yes, that’s right” as the idea slips from unconscious hints to conscious understanding. It was there all along.

In the last couple of weeks I’ve had a softly growing realization of the feeling I want to create with my art.

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I want my art to create a pause. I want it to create a space, a brief moment, in a busy life to allow for a deep breath. I want my images to give a gift of greater awareness, a chance to notice the world in a different way, and connect with heart and soul.

No small feat, right?

But as I’ve looked at my Photo-Heart Connections over the last months I see this theme of “pause and breathe” in so many of them. This is what my heart is telling me I need to do, for myself. This is what my heart is telling me I need to share.

This is what other people have told me about my work for a while, regardless of subject or process. I’ve heard the term “contemplative” used. I’ve heard other descriptions, but the one that stuck with me most recently, the one that nudged this desire into consciousness, is my friend who told me my work allows him to “take a deep breath.”

So there is nothing new here, just my conscious realization that I want to cultivate this feeling. I want to seek this. I don’t want it to be one in ten or even one in two. This is what I want my work to be about. I may not always get there, but it will help to have an idea of where I am going as I create.

It’s a subtle transition, from
capturing my experience of the world around me
to
creating an experience from the world around me.
A shift from passive to active. A shift from unconscious to conscious.

I breathe deep, and exhale a gentle realization.

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Hello, Spring

Along the edge of the trail yesterday, I noticed the wild iris blooming. I love these small, delicate flowers. They are like the quiet cousin of the typical varieties you see around in gardens.

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I got up close and personal with my iPhone, but the images just weren’t capturing the essence of these beautiful little flowers on a gorgeous spring morning.

So I looked for the light… and there it was.

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Hello, spring.

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Back to Play

The thing I’m realizing about play, and the resulting creativity that comes along, is that you need time. Unstructured time to just see what happens. No agenda. Come what may…

Here’s the result of my play this morning. I call it “Lifeblood.”

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This was created with some new apps I’ve been playing with recently, Handy Photo, Percolator and Repix, along with some of my mainstay apps, Glaze and Snapseed.

It feels good to play again.

Linking up to Paint Party Friday this week. Hi everyone!

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Radiating Beauty

I love it when a plan comes together! When I captured this photograph of lotus flowers*, I knew immediately I wanted to do a painterly edit. No doubt this desire was influenced by my love of Monet’s water lily paintings!

So I was thrilled yesterday morning when I played with the image and came up with this final result. Perfect timing to share with Paint Party Friday too!

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I love the way everything seems to radiate out from the grouping of flowers. There is an energy I feel when I look at it, even though the edit softens things up. It’s dynamic and yet beautiful at the same time.

* What flower I actually photographed seems to be up for debate. There is a difference between lotus and water lilies, but I don’t know enough to tell. All I know is the native Singaporeans I was with called these lotus. Does anyone know the answer? Here’s the original photo for more clarity.

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One more parting note: I will be doing a giveaway of a space in my upcoming A Sense of Place online class in my email newsletter coming out this weekend. Be sure to sign up for the newsletter if you aren’t already a subscriber, so you can enter.

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