Abstract: “drawn away…”

“…removing all traces of reality,” (Pablo Picasso)

a visual image with no immediate association with the object world

…the decontextualization of an object

With emphasis on color…

…light and shadow…

…texture and pattern…

…shape and form.

Abstraction often involves the isolation of a fragment of a scene.

Or purposeful staging to create an unreal appearance.

It can involve looking closer than you have before,

or backing away.

“Interest in the subject matter must not be greater than the appreciation of the extraordinary.” (Alvin Langdon Coburn, 1916)

Abstract images convey feeling, sensation or impressions.

An abstract can be a representative of an abstract subject…

…or a non-representative image.

But they draw away from the real and recognizable.

Conceptual meaning and intrinsic form dominate.

Here’s the acid test: If you look at a photo and there’s a voice inside you that says ‘What is it?’….Well, there you go. It’s an abstract photograph.” (John Suler)

Does it depart from true meaning?

Does it depart from existence? Reality itself?

The garden world is rich with abstract possiblities.

Some think that abstraction is more real than nature.

Seeing what you know in a new and unfamiliar light…

…brings new depth and richness to your experience.

True seeing is more than looking.

It is a layered experience.

Representations of things…

…are inherently abstract.

It’s a PHOTOGRAPH of a leaf, not a leaf!

“In every landscape should reside jewels of abstract art waiting to be discovered.” (Melissa Brown)