Monday, April 10, 2017

What Art Replaces

by Carol


I came upon this beautiful poem about art today. It is by Elizabeth Alexander, the poet who read at Barak Obama's swearing in ceremony. It's from her book called The Light of The World; A Memoir.  She wrote it shortly after her husband died unexpectedly. You can hear her read it here.   Perhaps because I have recently experienced loss, this speaks to me deeply.

But I think I would have reacted to it anyway. Its that line about art trying to "capture what we know leaves us." I'm romantic about art that way, especially photography. I am always trying to capture that moment before it goes , so that I can savor it any time I like. For me, that's what its all about.

Here are Elizabeth's words:





"Art replaces the light that is lost when the day fades, the moment passes,
the evanescent extraordinary makes its quicksilver.



Art tries to capture that which we know leaves us, as we move in and out of each other's lives,
as we all must eventually leave this earth.




Great artists know that shadow, work always against the dying light,
but always knowing that the day brings new light and that the ocean washes away 
all traces on the sand, leaves us a new canvas with each wave." 
                                                                        







11 comments:

Sandra said...

Beautiful, both in images and in words. The feelings we experience after a loss need to be nurtured and respected before transformation and serenity can take place.

Liz said...

A great post with very effective words. I too love to capture photographic moments so I can savour them.

kelly said...

I love the way you see art Carol. Thank you for sharing these inspired words and photos.

Anonymous said...

So beautifully spoken, Carol! I love the way art resonates with our daily lives and captures what we inevitable lose...but only for a short time..as life here on earth is only but a moment, but our souls will live on for eternity! Thanks for sharing!

terriporter said...

Wow, what a perfect quote for us photographers! It is one of the things I love most about photography, that we are able to capture moments that would otherwise be lost to us and keep them with us forever. Our memories might become fuzzy with time, but the things and people we have captured in photographs will always be with us. Beautiful post, Carol!

Deb McKew said...

Just beautiful, Carol. Thank you!

moira said...

Exquisite images and beautiful words, a lovely and much appreciated post.

Focusing on Life said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
Cathy H. said...

So very beautiful, Carol! Lovely words and soothing photography! (above comment was me who forgot to sign out of FOL)

Carol said...

Im so glad this spoke to so many of you - it certainly did to me! My thanks to this community and its lovely responsiveness!

Dotti said...

Looks like I'm Joanie Come Lately today. I read the post early this morning on the treadmill (where I can't type) but this is my first opportunity to fully enjoy this beautiful post on the "big screen". The words are so moving and the photography - well, you had me from the get go. Love them all!

Post a Comment

Thank you for sharing part of your day with us. If for any reason you are unable to leave a comment here on this post, please leave your comment on our Facebook page or in our Flickr discussion group. We love hearing from you!

 
© Focusing On Life