Contemplating Water

Aryaloka Buddhist Center, Newmarket, NH

The Earth, Water, Fire Exhibit of my contemplative photography is on display at Aryaloka Buddhist Center from Oct. 5 - Nov. 14, 2012.   I will be speaking about my work at the center on Nov. 11 at 6 pm.  This post is part of a series of musings on the elements as I have expressed them in my art.

Ripple - 2007

The element water has always been a fascination of mine, possibly because I am a Scorpio, which astrologically is a fixed water sign. In the Buddhist mandala of elements, I identify with the clarity of the Vajra family, which is connected with water.   People often comment about my clarity of expression and I am known to get angry and self-righteous when I get too solid in my opinions.  Both are qualities of this family.

Fall Reflection - 2012

 
Yet water offers a wealth of other qualities.  It is the most adaptable of elements taking the shape of whatever contains it.  It can be as solid as ice or ethereal as mist, capable of great destruction in minutes as a tsunami or slow penetration as drops cutting through stone over eons.  Water cleanses and binds together solids, while keeping them flexible. Water as saliva makes taste possible.  Our body mass is 80% water, as blood and other bodily fluids.  Water energy is what facilitates communication as we speak of the flow of ideas, commerce or emotions. 

Snow,Drop,Mist - 2011

I have been fascinated with documenting the many faces of water as a photographer and videographer.  With so many moods, I find myself mesmerized by its ever changing nature.  We live near a creek and less than a half hour from the ocean, which gives me plenty of opportunity to explore natural bodies of water visually.  My husband loves to go canoeing and I will often bring my camera on our excursions.  "Loon" is an example of a single take video created from the canoe.  Guy smoothly paddled while I shot the footage.  A fellow grad student, Brian deAngelo composed the soundtrack.

The exhibit at Aryaloka shows just a small sample of the hundreds of images I have taken of water over the years.  You can see more at: www.rebekahyounger.com 

Contemplating earth

Yellow Triangle - c. 2006

 I awoke this morning musing on the elemental qualities of earth. To skillfully work with this world a clear understanding of the elements and how they work helps. 
So it is not surprising that so many contemplatives have spent time observing and reflecting on the qualities of earth, water, fire, wind and space.  Indeed cultures as diverse as Chinese, Celtic, Native American and more have some system of understanding life based on these elements. 
In a world where we are less in touch with our place in nature and move at a fast pace with no time to ponder these things, it is possible to lose touch with this wisdom.

I have been studying the Tibetan Buddhist system of the Five Elements.  In that system, the elements are a mandala working on three levels of existence, the coarse or physical level; the subtle or emotional/mental/non-physical level; and the secret or awakened wisdom level.

Earth is the most solid of these forces.  Indeed it is what provides ground, solidity and structure to everything. We speak of "feeling grounded", of someone as being "down to earth" or having an earthy nature when they manifest some solidity and a sense of genuine presence.  

Life & Death - c. 2012

 There is also a quality of abundance and generosity in the bounty of earth.  Everything comes from the earth, and returns to it as in "dust to dust." Chogyam Trungpa in his book, True Perception, describes earth as like a rotten log, falling apart that has become a haven for creatures and from it sprouts new trees and mushrooms. A sense of richness and fecundity are evoked in this image of the cycle of life & death.

In our bodies, the earth quality is our bones and muscles, socially it is organizational structures.  Without these structures we could not be functional either personally or as a society. Indeed it is the structures that define the functionality of the form.  Unchanneled wind/action or water/emotion or fire/passion can be ineffective, or worse, destructive without the support and structure of earth.  Resting on earth and trusting its stability allows us to build and create what is needed from the bounty it provides. When earth is out of balance, greed or rigidity can manifest.

Ultimately the awakened quality of earth is a sense of equanimity, that everything can be borne, as the earth supports everything on its surface without discrimination.

A Delicate Balance - c. 2012

These qualities are what emerge in the images I have prepared for the upcoming exhibit, Earth, Water, Fire at Aryaloka Buddhist Center, Oct. 5-Nov. 14. 
 
How do you see the element of earth manifesting in the world around you?  I'd love to read your comments.

My next post will be on the element of Water.

First Canoe Ride of the Year

Spring is finally here! This video was taken on our first canoe ride of the year. Now with my trusty digital audio recorder I am adding more sounds to my videos. The soundtrack for this video is of peepers who rule the evening airwaves around our house in the spring. Night Ripple is the title of this video short. Enjoy!
The water levels have been particularly high ( just short of flood stage) with the spring rains, in part due to the rapid melt off with our warm sprig weather. While this is troubling to those folks in low lying areas, it has meant we could travel much further up our local creek with the canoe, floating over submerged fallen trees, beaver dams and other debris which normally would block our path. With a sense of adventure we paddled into new territory seeking new vistas to explore.

Reflected Water and Light

I have been recording video of water reflections and water's movement and these are just a few snippets that will be expanded into an installation exploring the phenomenal experience of water

Rounding the Bend - one of several videos taken of a canoe ride near our home. This video is 1 minute and 8 seconds long - I have compressed the file for web viewing, but prefer the full size version as it gives better definition to the ripples on the water, a major feature of these pieces. It is my intention to combine these images with images of streams, waterfalls and ripples on the ocean that I have already recorded to create an environmental exhibit with multiple projections happening at random intervals in a walled space with seating. The viewer would be encouraged to take in the imagery at an intimate level, preferrably close to lifesize, and enjoy the melodies of the water sounds along with the movement of reflections, water and light created by the videos.

Here are two more of the videos from this trip.




Ripple Effect- 1 minute and 6 sec




Rippling Trees - 50 seconds This video has a choppy cut about half way in due in part to the compression. I do however, hope to do better when I get more advanced editing software to work with these pieces.

This last piece is quite sloooowww, as it was intended. So settle back and see if you can discern the subtle movement of light and color. The movement was in real time. If you wish to see a speeded up version for those impatient souls, just move the slider and you will indeed see movement.




Prism Light - 4 minutes and 22 seconds