EvieArtsJournal: August 2010

Greetings from the Neuse River

Life here along the banks of the Neuse River, overlooking close to four miles of water, is a sharp contrast to living in a city. Most months, it is idyllic; then, there are the months that remind you that Mother Nature is definitely in charge.

This neighborhood of houses face the Neuse River and backs up to several acres of farmland -- most years, soybean --- then thick tracts of pine forests to the main road.

I love to watch the sea gulls, sometimes the pelicans, and cormorants or egrets and the occasional eagle or osprey. The cute visitors are "chickens" that my neighbor called me about photographing who were grazing in her yard. Even at 100 feet away, they were skittish and flew to the further neighbor's yard but just enough for me to photograph them for identification. These "chickens" turned out to be cattle egrets. The flock numbered about thirty -- by the river bank...not sure why they picked her yard.

I suppose you could say this blog is an occasional picture-book of life in Pamlico County or whatever comes to mind at the time.

Sunday, August 22, 2010

Dragon Boats Race

Residents of Oriental have nurtured a kinship with Dragon lore, images, eggs -- you name it. One develops a certain kind of craziness you know, living a few steps from the edge of a continent, a bit isolated and rural. Yesterday, they staged the first of hopefully many, dragon races. These boats pack about 20 rowers with a drummer and someone who steers (22 in all) and I had only a few minutes to click off a few shots in the heat and humidy

Tuesday, August 17, 2010

Painting as First love...

For all my dalliance with Photography and writing Poetry, Painting is really my first love and most closely identifies who I am. It gets harder and harder to get to it these days with the constant administrative right-brain work that I've been doing these last few months as President of the Pamlico Arts Council. "Winged Opus" (watercolor) was a part of the series for the show "Feathers, Fins & Things" several years ago.

Saturday, August 7, 2010

Images that Sear the Mind - Tar Baby vs St. Sebastian

Much has happened over the last couple of weeks --- including the loss of a dear friend and close neighbor. In fact, we co-owned, Kinu, my dog --- together briefly. Seems I've also been traveling more than usual. And, reflecting as I do, here by the river....I went back in my files to look at this piece of sculpture on display at the NC Museum of Art. This work is by a Jamaican-American, Michael Richards (1963-2001) who was killed in the NYC 9/11 tragedy and eerily, it seems to forecasts Richards' own death. Cast from his own body, planes pierce the body like arrows reminiscent of St. Sebastian.

EvieArtsJournal

Oriental, Sailing Capital of NC