A group of fellow bloggers and I were recently decided to create themed posts for each Friday. This week’s theme is to share a favorite or inspiring piece of art.
This theme was a challenging one for me. My mind wandered through the many museums I have visited in the U.S. and Europe, searching for the one piece of art that stood out as a possible candidate for “favorite”. Scores of gorgeous paintings and statues paraded through my memory but not a single one rose to the top to be the chosen one.
I’ll admit to being quite picky when it comes to art, especially that which adorns my walls. In fact, when I took a quick inventory of the artwork hanging in my house, nearly all of it is in the form of framed photography – primarily of my kids and of my travels.
Huh. Interesting.
Then I took a quick *cough* peek at my Pinterest boards. My photography board (the largest one in my collection) is full of the same. People. Places. Black and white photos and bold, bright colors seem to catch my eye most often.
And that’s when it hit me.
My favorite kind of art is photography. Of people and far away places.
photo credit: seriykotik1970 via photopin cc
My absolute favorites are the more candid people photos, those brief moments when the subject is smiling and looking down or has turned slightly away from the camera with a pensive look. Those photos can sometimes move me to tears with their simple, intimate beauty.
I also love it when a photographer captures the personality of place as though you’re right there feeling the pulse of everything around you, as though you’ve stepped through the lens at the precise second the giant pause button was pushed, just before everything falls into motion once again.
Funny how it takes a post like this to sort out one’s preferences.
The Canon Rebel. Yes, please. photo credit: Khánh Hmoong via photopin cc
I don’t claim to be a great photographer and the photos I’ve chosen to frame and display at home really only have significance to me and my family, so I won’t bore you with them here. But just like my goals and hopes and dreams for being a writer, I also want to be a really good photographer. Quite desperately, actually.
I don’t want to infringe on any photographer’s copyrights so I’m not going to post any of my favorites here. Feel free to skip over to my photography board on Pinterest to take a peek at the kinds of photos to which I’m drawn. (And before you say anything, yes, I know there’s a ridiculous abundance of photos of a certain person on there. Whatever. Don’t judge.)
Also, be sure to check out these blogs featuring more inspiring art work:
Liv Rancourt: Chist and St. Michael
Rabia Gale: Large Blue Horses by Franz Marc
Ellen Gregory: Boticelli’s Venus
Linda Adams: Inspiration in Color in Washington D.C.
Margaret Miller: How Do You Decide a Favorite?
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What about you, artful readers? What kind of art floats your boat? What piece of art would you deem your favorite? What kind of art would move you to spend money on it and then display it in your home? Sit, sip, and tell. Your comments really do make my day and I always love hearing from you.
Pingback: Large Blue Horses by Franz Marc | Rabia Gale
Pingback: Christ And St. Michael | Liv Rancourt
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Margaret said:
Wonderful post Tami! I’m right with you in wanting to take better photos. My best camera is still a film camera – one of the original Canon EOSs released in Australia many years ago. I seem to have never gone beyond the point and shoot digitals and now with smartphone photography becoming a genre of it’s own (perhaps), the notion of art is ever expanding.
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Tami Clayton said:
I know what you mean about the point and shoots and phone cameras. In fact, most of the photos I take these days is on my phone. And not very good ones at that. I’m lusting after the Canon Rebel digital cameras right now. I’m sure it won’t make me a stellar photographer and I’ll spend at least a year getting familiar with it. Nonetheless, I’d still love to have one.
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Liv Rancourt said:
The most expensive piece of art in my house is a panel with tiles made by my daughter’s 7th grade class. Each kid wrote what they wanted to be when they grew up on one of the tiles. It’s probably not worth much to anyone but the parents of the kids who made it, but a couple of us sure did get in a bidding war at the school auction!
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Tami Clayton said:
I love art work like that. So meaningful in so many ways. Several years ago, my oldest’s 4th and 5th grade art classes focused on the impressionists and she made some really fabulous pieces based on those styles. I framed a couple of them and if you stand at a certain angle, they actually look like a Miro or a Van Gogh. (Well, at least to me they do.)
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Ellen Gregory said:
Well, I think your decision not to post any of YOUR photos is a total cop out, Tami! I would have loved to see one or two. 🙂
I’ve never really fancied myself a photographer, but the WordPress weekly photo challenge has really captured my imagination. I even find myself contemplating the purchase of a fancy camera… not that I can really afford one just at the moment. (I think a new computer is more urgent.)
As for art on my walls, I have a mix of paintings and old prints… and a brass rubbing. I do have a gorgeous mounted photo taken by a friend too. (Maybe for a subsequent challenge we should all post art we actually have on our walls!)
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Tami Clayton said:
I would have put up a couple of my travel photos, but I think I’ve already shared them here in the kasbah. I thought about posting a couple of my children, but I also felt like I’d done that (maybe not those specific photos) too much already. Maybe once I get that fancy new camera (after winning the lottery or signing that six-figure book deal) and I take some new photos.
I agree, the WordPress weekly photo challenge has pushed me to get my camera out more often in my every day life. It’s funny to be out running errands or at some sporting event for the 13 year-old and think, “Oh, that right there would make a great photo for the WordPress weekly photo challenge.”
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Ellen Gregory said:
I know… I’m going around thinking “escape”… “escape”… what does “escape” mean for me??? Hehehe.
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Tami Clayton said:
Exactly. 🙂
Pingback: Botticelli’s Venus | Ellen Gregory
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Elizabeth Fais said:
It is hard for me to pick a favorite piece of art as well. Reading your post made me realize how much I love photography as well. Nice touch pointing us to your Pinterest board!
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Tami Clayton said:
Thanks, Elizabeth! Photography has a way of pulling me in that other types of art doesn’t. Not that I’m not moved by other forms, I’m just not as curiously drawn in quite as much.
Pingback: Inspiring Art | Kim Griffin's Blog
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Mike Schulenberg said:
I’ve never thought of myself as a huge art fan, although I’ve always enjoyed the stuff used for book and album covers, roleplaying games, comic books, and black light posters. This past semester I took an Art Appreciation class, which exposed me to some pretty cool stuff–like Chinese landscape paintings 🙂
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Tami Clayton said:
Art comes in so many forms that there seems to be something out there for everyone. I wish I had taken an Art Appreciation class in college. The closest I came was a study of ancient architecture, which is an art form all itself.
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Mike Schulenberg said:
I would think a class on ancient architecture would be really interesting. While I enjoyed my art appreciation class and liked the teacher, I’m not sure how much you really missed by not taking it in college. It didn’t really do much that couldn’t be done by someone on their own who wanted to learn more about art–although it did make me go to the Houston Museum of Fine Arts, which was a first for me.
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Linda Adams said:
Do post your photos! I’ve been surprised at the results I’ve gotten by posting mine online. There are a lot of people who like to take a few minutes to look at some pictures — and the internet is particularly a visual venue well suited for it.
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Tami Clayton said:
Thanks for the encouragement, Linda. I hesitated to share them because I’ve posted some already, especially those in my Italy posts. I do try to post my own photos when they turn out well enough, though. I can assure you there will be more to come.
Pingback: Photos: Inspiration in Color in Washington DC | Linda Adams
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Catherine said:
I’m the same with my phone. If I went out and about with a big camera I’d see nothing so having a phone handy is better. There’s a muskrat nearby I catch out quite a bit.
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Kim Griffin said:
Black and whites are my favorite type of photograph. They show details that you wouldn’t normally see and the shadowing appeals to me. I also love candids ~ they are the best ~ I feel like they capture the soul.
That is a great Pinterest board, by the way. Love it 🙂
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Marcia said:
All your photo picks from Pinterest were grand… I liked them all. Do post yours as well though, for our full enjoyment.