Contagion

"Tranquillity is contagious, peace is contagious. One only thinks of the contagiousness of illness, but there is the contagion of serenity and joy." -Anais Nin

 

I picked these dandelion seed heads as they caught my eye and were about to disperse to the wind. I put them in a jar and photographed them with the backlight of my window and a perspective from underneath them.

 

I was surprised at the detail I could see via my camera lens, and how quickly these seed heads all wanted to intermingle with one another, drawn via their velcro like tentacles. Then I also noticed an ant had become mummified in one of them, unable to disentangle itself from the center of this dandelion seed.

 

The concept of contagion jumped into my mind. And indeed, dandelions have a force unto themselves in their ability to spread everywhere with their airborne seeds on a breezy day.

 

Photo taken June 9, 2022

 

Done