Peripheral Vision - Inner Sights by Lynda Lehmann

The Arc

noreply@blogger.com (Lynda Lehmann) — Wed, 25 Mar 2020 23:31:00 +0000

The Arc

I drift on a thought, on the whoosh of a bough.

A giant oak umbrella.

Sky is grey

but azure patches remain.

It doesn’t matter.

I see my consciousness in clouds

reflected in windshields.

Though just a child I feel special:

nature whispers to tell me who I am.

So many revelations!

With balm and tonic ever close,

storms are fleeting.

Smug with the privilege of secrets shared,

I need no reprieve from this conversation.

Trees have been hugging me since I was old enough to walk.

Two years old or maybe less, on a swing in a playground in Brooklyn,

I peer upward as

I orchestrate the air.

Jubilant arcs beg the question, “What is the sky?”

How is it that I’m able to swing through the sky?

When I grow older, I realize that the sky conjoins

the infinite potentials of the universe.

And these halls might as well be a palace,

for I am rich.

Lynda Lehmann c 2020 - All rights reserved

Note: You can click on each photo to see a larger version. All images and text on this blog are copyrighted material, and may be used only with written permission, except where syndication rights have been granted. All other rights reserved. Please visit my sites listed in my sidebar if you would like to see my paintings and more of my photography and digital art, or make a purchase. You can find cool, artsy gifts at my Zazzle shops or purchase prints and products at www.lynda-lehmann.pixelscom!

Archived Articles on Art-Making at Creativity Portal

noreply@blogger.com (Lynda Lehmann) — Tue, 11 Jun 2019 20:23:00 +0000

Cycle of Beauty c 2019 Lynda Lehmann  

Available on Prints and Merchandise at www.LyndaLehmann.com

Please click the link below to find some of my archived writing on the nature of art-making.  I hope something resonates with you!  
Thoughts on Creative Process and Art Making

DANCE AROUND A FALLEN TREE

noreply@blogger.com (Lynda Lehmann) — Tue, 27 Nov 2018 22:47:00 +0000

View Through a Fallen Trunk - c 2017 Lynda Lehmann

DANCE AROUND A FALLEN TREE

Dance around a fallen tree

like me, like me.

I’m in and out of the fallen tree

but all around her

roots will sprout

and later spread in boughs replete

with leaves and shade and

energy

reverberating out

to where sky, earth and water meet.

And this is where I want to be.

At One, at One,

with the fallen tree.

Lynda Lehmann c 2018

To Write or Not to Write? (Which Hat or Mask to Wear)

noreply@blogger.com (Lynda Lehmann) — Thu, 19 Apr 2018 00:03:00 +0000

Masks - c Lynda Lehmann

Quantum Muse features some interesting short articles on writing. When I read them, I get excited and want to return to my fiction works.

Woe is me. Too many choices, both wonderful and agonizing. Acrylics or digital art? Geometric or organic? Maybe large florals in watercolor.... Hmmmm. Unfinished novels or short stories? Should I start new work altogether, or try to hone those old poems that are still too wordy? Having a lot of passions is a blessing and a curse.

When I'm in conflict over which choice(s) to make, I tell myself that it doesn't really matter, as long as I know I'm producing and growing in my creative endeavors.

What's your favorite hat -- or mask? How do you handle conflicts of which passions to pursue? Do you lose or find yourself in your primary passion? Or maybe both...?

Note: You can click on each photo to see a larger version. All images and text on this blog are copyrighted material, and may be used only with written permission, except where syndication rights have been granted. All other rights reserved. Please visit my sites listed in my sidebar if you would like to see my paintings and more of my photography and digital art, or make a purchase. You can also find cool, artsy gifts at www.lyndalehmann.com or at my Zazzle shops!

Global to Local in Ecuador

noreply@blogger.com (Lynda Lehmann) — Thu, 07 Sep 2017 19:10:00 +0000

You will undoubtedly find inspiration in watching these young people empowering young people to create transformation in the world. I know I did. Kudos to them for all their efforts. This short video will tell you who they are and something about their goals.

Note: You can click on each photo to see a larger version. All images and text on this blog are copyrighted material, and may be used only with written permission, except where syndication rights have been granted. All other rights reserved. Please visit my sites listed in my sidebar if you would like to see my paintings and more of my photography and digital art, or make a purchase. You can also find cool, artsy gifts at my Zazzle shops!

Excelsior Academy Students Visit Indigenous Village 235 in Ecuador

noreply@blogger.com (Lynda Lehmann) — Mon, 03 Jul 2017 18:30:00 +0000

Here's a short video of the student group that my daughter and her colleague took to Ecuador. The students here are speaking about their perceptions as they visit an indigenous village. It's amazing to hear these students speak, and if you're a humanist, you will love this!

Global to Local - Excelsior Academy

noreply@blogger.com (Lynda Lehmann) — Sat, 15 Apr 2017 19:35:00 +0000

I’m so proud of my daughter, Jacqueline Hesse, and her colleague Christine McCartney, both teachers at Excelsior Academy, who believe in grassroots action and empowerment. I’m posting this to support their quest to teach and empower their students, who are fighting poverty and other problems in Newburgh, NY, by volunteering and travel education, to help revitalize their community.

It’s truly inspiring to listen to these fine young people who are trying to help themselves and their communities!
Note: You can click on each photo to see a larger version. All images and text on this blog are copyrighted material, and may be used only with written permission, except where syndication rights have been granted. All other rights reserved. Please visit my sites listed in my sidebar if you would like to see my paintings and more of my photography and digital art, or make a purchase. You can also find cool, artsy gifts at my Zazzle shops!

Praising Abstraction

noreply@blogger.com (Lynda Lehmann) — Sat, 15 Apr 2017 15:43:00 +0000

Blooming Joy - Acrylic on Canvas - c Lynda Lehmann

If we are going to discuss the validation of art by virtue of “skill” or “meaning,” we have to give abstraction a fair shake. To my way of thinking, abstract art is more interesting (if not more beautiful) than realism, because it presents a visual experience that has no precedent in reality. It presents something totally new and is its own reality. Realism refers to a single point in time and space even when it is arresting, compelling and speaks to universals.

But abstraction can be richly layered and full of ambiguity and mystery that yields fresh nuances of visual experience with each viewing. To me, abstract art comprises a rich, multi-dimensional experience because it doesn’t cater to the constraints of time and place. The new visual experience it presents is of value in and of itself, and does not require a literal meaning in the usual sense. As a matter of fact, it may call on the viewer to be a more active participant in the viewing, because it reaches beyond our usual scope of perception and lends itself to the subjective reality of each viewer. Art does not need to refer to political or religious ideologies, or even the continuum of human emotions and experience, to garner its meaning.

It simply is, and therein lies its meaning. And to me, abstraction is very compelling in its visual (and emotional) richness.

As for the “skills” part of the equation, Kandinsky (among others) manifested a high level of both imagination and skill that many realists don’t possess. Good abstraction is difficult to achieve, often involving both concept and great discipline that match or exceed many realist paintings.

Abstract art is often devalued because, to many people, it “looks” easy. To me, it represents the creative experience at its best.

Note: You can click on each photo to see a larger version. All images and text on this blog are copyrighted material, and may be used only with written permission, except where syndication rights have been granted. All other rights reserved. Please visit my sites listed in my sidebar if you would like to see my paintings and more of my photography and digital art, or make a purchase. You can also find cool, artsy gifts at my Zazzle shops!

Web of Light

noreply@blogger.com (Lynda Lehmann) — Mon, 30 May 2016 00:17:00 +0000

Web of Light - Image c Lynda Lehmann 2016

Sunlight plays over the surface of a New Hampshire stream, illuminating the pebbles and rocks beneath the flow and adorning them with golden spangles of light that dance and change ad infinitum, creating a calming and hypnotic light show.

I have tweaked and stylized this image with software, to add contrast to the colors and lights and darks. I hope it fills you with a sense of awe, as it does, me!

I would rather watch the mystery of nature's cycles unfolding, than have riches in my hand. My heart and soul sing along with the gurgling light song of the stream.

The Magical Time Before Twilight

noreply@blogger.com (Lynda Lehmann) — Sun, 29 May 2016 18:27:00 +0000

The Magical Time Before Twilight - Image c Lynda Lehmann

With the approach of twilight, mystery shrouds the forest and the islands that dot a pristine Maine lake. Day is not quite finished with her light play on the lake surface. But night will move in with moonlight, twinkling stars in the ink black sky, and capricious winds playing in new rhythms over the water.

With each soft puff of sweet lake breeze, my heart fills and quickens. I am replete.

A Tree in Maine

noreply@blogger.com (Lynda Lehmann) — Fri, 22 Apr 2016 00:11:00 +0000

A Tree in Maine - by Lynda Lehmann Art c 2016

Here's a beautiful tree I photographed one spring, in Maine. There were four or five of these Kwanza Cherry Trees in a row, about 20 or so feet from each other, and their pink was just exploding in the sunlight!

Seeing all those cherry trees in a line, glowing pink and magenta in the sun, was wonderful serendipity, a touch of welcome color when walking down a road past grisled forest where the green was broken only by tree trunks and fallen branches.

The sunlight on the trees made the scene seem bigger than life. Isn't it amazing how the light makes all things pop, indeed, seems to make things come alive? In short, light seems to make things "real!"

Musing on Creative Process

noreply@blogger.com (Lynda Lehmann) — Wed, 20 Apr 2016 21:18:00 +0000

Orbiting Seashells - Digital Art c 2016 Lynda Lehmann

I believe the "logic" of abstract art is purely an internal logic: a logic of the visual language. Some or many elements compete for various positions in the totality of the piece, and those elements can be compared to the elements of spoken language. Some areas are dominant, like the subject of a sentence. Some carry the "action," as a verb does. Other areas of the composition are transitional and create linkage between one area and another, kind of like a preposition.

This is just my own perception. But in my thinking, I have run into this metaphor again and again. And I'm fascinated by the language comparison: in this case, with the analogous visual parts making up the analogous (visual) "whole."

In what way do YOU regard abstraction? Maybe you think of it in a musical or psychological or religious paradigm?

Lynda Lehmann c 2013

from "Peripheral Vision: Inner Sights by Lynda Lehmann"

Return to Blogging

noreply@blogger.com (Lynda Lehmann) — Wed, 06 Apr 2016 22:22:00 +0000

Fantasy with African Violets and Peace Lily - c 2016 Lynda Lehmann

I have gone through many life changes since I last blogged here or at my Mindsights Blog, which you can visit here: www.mindsights.wordpress.com.

You’ve likely gone through a lot of life changes as well, and I hope that you are finding good outcomes. I hope to post more frequently and to not have to drop the ball again. I had met so many good and interesting people while blogging that I can earnestly say it was one of the most interesting and fulfilling endeavors of my life. Mostly because of YOU! Blogging would have meant nothing were it not for the persons behind the posts. And that’s obvious. Nonetheless, good feelings are always worth sharing.

So I will begin now by offering some of my words about art and creative process, and try to post much more often, both images, writing and whatever other forms of communication seem appropriate.

You can read my short #‎essays on #‎art, including ART AND POWER here: http://www.creativity-portal.com/articles/lynda-lehmann/ and share your thoughts with me!

My best to each of you. Much time has passed, but our creative passions have a way of re-igniting themselves, post adversity. Or perhaps they are a potent force that helps us prevail both during adversity and after! What’s your feeling about that? How has creativity, whatever form it takes in your life, worked for YOU?

Note: You can click on each photo to see a larger version. All images and text on this blog are copyrighted material, and may be used only with written permission, except where syndication rights have been granted. All other rights reserved. Please visit my sites listed in my sidebar if you would like to see my paintings and more of my photography and digital art, or make a purchase. You can also find cool, artsy gifts at my Zazzle shops! And please pardon my bog appearance while I get used to platform changes!

Beautiful Seashells on Your Postage Stamps!

noreply@blogger.com (Lynda Lehmann) — Wed, 19 Aug 2015 19:42:00 +0000

Ocean Gems Seashell Treasures in Magenta Stamp by CrystalShellandStone
Browse Sea Stamps

Return to Blogging...

noreply@blogger.com (Lynda Lehmann) — Mon, 10 Aug 2015 21:43:00 +0000

To my readers and blogging friends whom I met so long ago, on our respective blogs. I don't know how life threw me off course (but then again, I do) but the tides have taken a peaceful turn and my little boat is upright. So I am aiming for solid land and to blog and produce a lot of art and gift products, the things that give me joy.
I know we have all gone through all kinds of changes. Sometimes getting back on our feet is tough. My advice is to hang in there and believe in the future you were trying to make for yourself.
I hope to find you again if you are still blogging. I will try to intersperse the usual nature articles and poems with my more "commercial" posts. I hope to keep it going! My best to you!
All Photos c Lynda Lehmann
Note: You can click on each photo to see a larger version. All photos, images and text on this blog are copyrighted material, and may be used only with written permission, except where syndication rights have been granted. All other rights reserved. Please visit my sites listed in my sidebar if you would like to see my paintings, photography and digital art, or make a purchase. You can visit my Zazzle shops for cool gifts that are unique and artsy.

New at My Crystal Shell and Stone Shop at Zazzle!

noreply@blogger.com (Lynda Lehmann) — Mon, 10 Aug 2015 18:08:00 +0000

Limpid Underground Cave Pool Wristlet by CrystalShellandStone
Shop here for Wristletsat Zazzle

Beautiful Surface Rich Hues Rock Abstract Classic White Coffee Mug by CrystalShellandStone
Design your own personalised cup from Zazzle.

Crystals in a Strange Land Postcard by CrystalShellandStone
See more Crystals Postcards

Seashells No. 15 Elegant Jewelry Box by CrystalShellandStone
Check out Shells Gift Boxes online at zazzle

Limpid Underground Cave Pool Postcard by CrystalShellandStone
Get your postcards printing from zazzle

10% Off All Orders! Up to 45% Off Back to School Essentials!

Ends Saturday Use Code: READY4SCHOOL Details

IDENTITY THEFT and FRAUD SITUATION!

noreply@blogger.com (Lynda Lehmann) — Mon, 09 Mar 2015 20:53:00 +0000

Image “Waiting” c Lynda Lehmann

I want to advise my FB, artist and blogging friends that the URL to my main web site has been stolen and is being used fraudulently and no doubt, to dubious ends. I have no idea how many folks who know me or who don’t know me, have visited lyndalehmann.com, and I want to warn you against doing so. If you choose to go there, you are at least forewarned and are doing so at your own risk.

Someone has snatched my name/URL (from my first and primary site, now defunct, with the owners no longer at the helm) and used it, along with my photo and some content from my bio, to create a site of dubious merit. This person has posted numerous articles in my name. Many of the articles it links to, look legit at first glance. A mysterious disclaimer on the front page about cookies and tracking makes me wonder….just what they’re after. Harnessing traffic from my once-busy site that I have lost possession and control of, or just stealing identities to pull off internet schemes?

So, lyndalehman.com, which was my beloved first and foremost site with well over 1000 art images on it, now appears to be a fraudulent baiting/phishing site of some kind. And the worst thing is that it appears at the top of all my web listings! So that means a lot of unsuspecting people have visited there.

I’m trying to address the situation, but just want to warn you that if you go there and see my name and image, it’s not me. It’s a case of internet identity theft. Just so you know!

I have been advised to post this on my sites, so that no one will be unwittingly taken advantage of. In the meantime, I am “Waiting” for resolution of this problem.

“Seashell Burst” and Other Archetypal Forms

noreply@blogger.com (Lynda Lehmann) — Thu, 17 Jul 2014 18:43:00 +0000

I call this image "Shell Burst" because it reminds me of the proverbial "Sunburst." The sun has been a metaphor on numerous levels for the human species since the beginning of time, so it seems to follow that any image resembling a sunburst might conjure subconscious archetypes. This closeup of a gorgeous fluted conch in relation to an adjacent shell makes a meditative still life that to me, is a tribute to nature's gorgeous diversity.
I am impressed by the delicate ridges of shell that encircle the center, and I'm reminded of the repeating, self-mirroring forms in nature that are expressed in the mathematical algorithms of fractals as well as in so many natural forms. The self-replicating forms of ferns and other plants are perfect examples of the impressive genetic codes that determine each species of life on earth, and the same majestic display of order within diversity goes on at the highest heights of mountains as well as in the depths of the oceans that comprise our globe.
What are some of your favorite examples of repeating forms?

Note: You can click on each photo to see a larger version. All images and text on this blog are copyrighted material, and may be used only with written permission, except where syndication rights have been granted. All other rights reserved. Please visit my sites listed in my sidebar if you would like to see my paintings and more of my photography and digital art, or make a purchase.

A Balanced Form of Self-Love

noreply@blogger.com (Lynda Lehmann) — Sun, 13 Jul 2014 18:11:00 +0000

The Eloquence of Dreaming - Mixed Media - Image c Lynda Lehmann

Producing art gives us power. I see it as a power over ourselves, over our energy, perception, motivational systems. And perhaps most important, I view it as a supplanting of our need to achieve a social equilibrium (which in my mind is never really possible anyway), by a need to achieve harmony with ourselves in relation to the universe.
The truth wear six billion faces, and each has different life circumstances, a different life script, if you will, and a different mode of being. For me, doing art takes me to a place from which I can accept all scripts and embrace the subjective and relative nature of truth. Because my own script is to me so engaging, at times enthralling, and always varied and full of mystery, it teaches me both tolerance and hope. It gives me confidence in the infinite potential of the universe, for hope, harmony, and healing. In short, it gives me joy.
I've heard it said that artists, in doing art, are participating in a God-like Creation process, and indeed it is true. While we are by no means transmuted into gods by the creative process, we at least become His humble hand-maidens. We see glimpses of beauty and wonder in places where other people may fail to look, unearthing it at every turn. We see new relationships, both visual and metaphoric, sociological and scientific. And this is our reward for moving away from the more petty power struggles that so often escalate into real and dangerous conflicts around the globe.
I've heard it said, also, that we artists make art in order to find love and to be loved. I think the apex of this is that in the tender connections we make to the universe, we find some degree of self-love. I think this is a balanced form of self-love that perceives the relative and tenuous nature of things, including the subjective nature of our own lives. Therefore, in my opinion, it is a mature self-love, not to be confused with narcissism.

Bark Abstraction: Art on Trees

noreply@blogger.com (Lynda Lehmann) — Thu, 10 Jul 2014 23:52:00 +0000

Barkreation - Image c Lynda Lehmann

The rough and irregular bark of a Southern Pine resembles shingles or a jigsaw puzzle and creates a lively abstract pattern. I find exquisite beauty in the articulated and varied surfaces of tree bark. Nature moves us in unexpected but exhilarating ways.

Note: You can click on each photo to see a larger version. All images and text on this blog are copyrighted material, and may be used only with written permission, except where syndication rights have been granted. All other rights reserved. Please visit my sites listed in my sidebar if you would like to see my paintings and more of my photography and digital art, or make a purchase.

Ecstasy at Twilight

noreply@blogger.com (Lynda Lehmann) — Mon, 07 Jul 2014 19:24:00 +0000

Ecstasy at Twilight - Image c Lynda Lehmann

Sometimes the sunset is so complex, poignant, and compelling to look at that it has the power to move us like a love poem or a wonderful new song. I have long been fascinated by the fact that each sunset is different and although I have borne witness to hundreds if not a thousand of them, they never cease to captivate me. Each one feels like a rebirth or an epiphany, making me aware of the mystery and complexity of life and our universe.

Note: You can click on each photo to see a larger version. All images and text on this blog are copyrighted material, and may be used only with written permission, except where syndication rights have been granted. All other rights reserved. Please visit my sites listed in my sidebar if you would like to see my paintings and more of my photography and digital art, or make a purchase.

Beauty in Demise: An Example of Paradox and Dichotomy

noreply@blogger.com (Lynda Lehmann) — Thu, 22 May 2014 19:29:00 +0000

Beauty in Demise - Photo c Lynda Lehmannn 2014

This is a studio setup inspired by some beautiful, lush branches of an orange tree that a good friend brought me to photograph. I did a series while the leaves were still lush green, with bright, juicy oranges and delicate white blossoms attached.
A week later, when the leaves had dried out and withered, I was stricken by the beauty/ugliness dichotomy and how the simple curling of individual leaves conjures "life" as a whole as well as some possible bird or animal forms. I then contemplate "the wholeness of things," as I like to call it, when one example or kind of form evokes another, at another level of being. From atoms to cells to tissues, organs, and organisms, similarities abound on a grand scale. From the micro level to the vast universe, underlying principles that can't be articulated but only vaguely perceived, bind the cosmos into that elegant "Oneness" that scientists and quantum physicists refer to.
If you would like to read a book that explores formal and functional similarities in biology and the greater universe as well, and will pique your sense of wonder, you might want to try The Lives of a Cell, by Lewis Thomas, M.D. It's a fascinating read that affirms Dr. Thomas' subtitle: Notes of a Biology Watcher. And it will give you prickles of what C.S. Lewis calls the feeling of "the numinous," that exhilarating and just slightly eerie feeling of awe and wonder that informs your spirit and lets you know that you in your humble human capacity, can still perceive great and mysterious things that are beyond our full apprehension.
I tried to arrange these leaves to get the most pleasing negative space, because I have always enjoyed negative space as well as the forms contained within. As my painting style has most often been frenetic, full of furiously looming form and texture, working with photography to achieve a more minimal composition is a welcome move in another direction. Have you done any minimal drawings or photos or penned a "minimal" poem lately?

Note: You can click on each photo to see a larger version. All images and text on this blog are copyrighted material, and may be used only with written permission, except where syndication rights have been granted. All other rights reserved. Please visit my sites listed in my sidebar if you would like to see my paintings and more of my photography and digital art, or make a purchase.

Butterfly Blossoms in Magenta Colorful Abstract Art Throw Pillows

noreply@blogger.com (Lynda Lehmann) — Thu, 18 Jul 2013 17:11:00 +0000

Unfortunately, I've been absent from blogging for a long time. And I do miss sharing experiences and perspectives with my blogging friends!
Life has a way of throwing us curves, but it's a good thing to return to our (neglected) passions. I've been busy working on my stores at Zazzle, when I have a little time to myself. Here are some new products in one of my favorite designs. I hope you love color as much as I do!

Butterfly Blossoms in Magenta Throw Pillows by WaterSky
Check out more Jazzy Pillows at Zazzle

Butterfly Blossoms in Magenta Laptop Computer Sleeves by WaterSky
View more laptop computer sleeve.

Butterfly Blossoms in Magenta Messenger Bags by WaterSky
View more commuter bags.

Butterfly Blossoms in Magenta Business Card Template by WaterSky
See more Jazzy Business Cards

Note: You can click on each photo to see a larger version. All images and text on this blog are copyrighted material, and may be used only with written permission, except where syndication rights have been granted. All other rights reserved. Please visit my sites listed in my sidebar if you would like to see my paintings and more of my photography and digital art, or make a purchase.

Today's Thought On Art: Elements of The Visual Language

noreply@blogger.com (Lynda Lehmann) — Fri, 17 May 2013 15:27:00 +0000

Untitled Gray - c Lynda Lehmann

I believe the "logic" of abstract art is purely an internal logic: a logic of the visual language. Some or many elements compete for various positions in the totality of the piece, and those elements can be compared to the elements of spoken language. Some areas are dominant, like the subject of a sentence. Some carry the "action," as a verb does. Other areas of the composition are transitional and create linkage between one area and another, kind of like a preposition.
This is just my own perception. But in my thinking, I have run into this metaphor again and again. And I'm fascinated by the language comparison: in this case, with the analogous visual parts making up the analogous (visual) "whole."
Lynda Lehmann c 2013

Note: You can click on each photo to see a larger version. All images and text on this blog are copyrighted material, and may be used only with written permission, except where syndication rights have been granted. All other rights reserved. Please visit my sites listed in my sidebar if you would like to see my paintings and more of my photography and digital art, or make a purchase.

Today's Thought On Art: The "Logic" of Abstraction

noreply@blogger.com (Lynda Lehmann) — Wed, 15 May 2013 13:37:00 +0000

Frantic Rooster c Lynda Lehmann 2013 - Acrylic on Canvas

I believe there IS a logic in building the visual experience we refer to as "abstract art." What is missing is a logical referent to any specific and time-bound element or phase of "reality." For this reason, abstract art owns a freedom and flux unattainable in obedience to realism.
Lynda Lehmann c 2013
Note: You can click on each photo to see a larger version. All images and text on this blog are copyrighted material, and may be used only with written permission, except where syndication rights have been granted. All other rights reserved. Please visit my sites listed in my sidebar if you would like to see my paintings and more of my photography and digital art, or make a purchase.