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AB FAV for today…
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I had been 'playing' with this concept for a while in my head. I called it (instead of the Silence of the Lambs) the Silence of the Bird. When I had the final result, it came to me immediately: VISUAL SILENCE.
I don't often 'dive' into the digital 'magical' darkroom that photoshop can be, but for certain projects it is a great creative tool!
Here, in the case of visual silence, what is being absorbed is not sound but gaze.
If silence is the absence of noise, then this visual silence is defined as the gradual absence, the vanishing, of what surrounds it, where we burrow from the visible surface to the invisible core. Our focus on the image involves a diminution of the optic field:
in this sense, visual silence is like a poem, its power arising from its sheer vulnerability. The image cannot be penetrated even by the most powerful of gazes because it is already open, in full view... and yet the transparency of the image, one that does not attempt to hide anything, is still capable of mystery.
Visual silence arrests us because it is the interface between two realms of partial knowledge: between he who does not know he is being watched and those who do not know what they are watching.
Some images leave us speechless, we watch them in silent awe.
Ultimately the camera is merely an extension of the human eye, it only sees and cannot wholly know what it is seeing.
May PEACE be with you and thanx for everything, M, (*_*)
For more of my other work visit here: www.indigo2photography.com
Please do not use any of my images on websites, blogs or any other media without my explicit permission. © All rights reserved
Photo Description (Gemini AI)
The Spiritual Realism of Gib Singleton: Materiality and Supplication in "Opening the Heart"
Visual Analysis of the Monumental Courtyard Installation
The photograph showcases a monumental, life-sized bronze sculpture titled Opening the Heart by the renowned American sculptor Gilbert "Gib" Singleton. The sculpture is installed in an outdoor courtyard along Canyon Road in Santa Fe, New Mexico, positioned directly in front of the Legacy Gallery. The composition is framed against a classic Pueblo Revival adobe building with soft, rounded, terracotta-tinted plaster walls, exposed dark wooden vigas (roof beams) projecting above a recessed entryway, and a partially visible bronze plaque reading "LEGACY GALLERY" in the background.
At the center of the image, the bronze figure of a Native American man stands on a flat, circular bronze base, which rests on a elevated, square masonry pedestal topped with a cracked, rustic stone slab. The figure is captured in a state of profound spiritual supplication, with his head tilted completely backward, facing the sky. His eyes are closed, his face is serene yet emotionally charged, and his mouth is slightly parted in prayer or song. His muscular arms are thrown wide and high in a dramatic "V" shape, with his hands open and palms facing upward to the heavens. He is adorned with traditional Native American elements: multiple strands of thick, textured beaded necklaces, bracelets on his wrists, a loincloth, and heavily textured, fringed leather leggings and moccasins.
To the right of the figure’s feet, resting on the masonry pedestal, is a highly detailed, hollow bronze sculpture of a bighorn sheep or ram skull, its prominent curled horns adding a stark, desert-themed iconographical element to the base of the monument. To the left of the sculpture, also resting on the stone-slab pedestal, sits a large, rounded ceramic planter. The planter features a rich, glossy glaze that transitions from a deep, earthy crimson red at the base to a dripping, cobalt blue and turquoise wash at the rim. This vessel is overflowing with vibrant, living flora, including tall, spiky green ornamental grasses, purple petunias, yellow pansies, and bright red tubular wildflowers.
The scene is bathed in the brilliant, high-altitude sunlight characteristic of northern New Mexico, which casts sharp shadows beneath the pedestal, the planter, and the sculptural folds of the bronze figure’s clothing. Behind the adobe building, a delicate deciduous tree with deep burgundy or reddish-purple leaves stands out against the warm plaster, while taller green trees frame the left side of the composition under a vibrant blue sky filled with soft, wispy white cirrus clouds.
The Artist and the Aesthetic of Spiritual Realism
To understand the stylistic and emotional weight of the sculpture in the photograph, one must examine the life and artistic philosophy of its creator, Gib Singleton (1935–2014). Represented heavily in the elite gallery spaces of Santa Fe, Singleton pioneered a genre he termed "spiritual realism" or "emotional realism". Trained at the Art Institute of Chicago and later at the prestigious Accademia di Belle Arti in Florence, Italy, Singleton developed a deep mastery of classical European bronze casting. While in Italy, his technical expertise was so highly regarded that he assisted in the restoration of Michelangelo’s damaged Pietà.
Despite his classical European training, Singleton returned to the American West, where he fused his deep spiritual beliefs and familiarity with Biblical narratives with the mysticism and iconography of Native American culture. His works are instantly recognizable by their highly expressive, tactile surfaces. Singleton chose not to polish his bronzes to a smooth finish; instead, the bronze retains the raw, gestural finger marks, tool textures, and clay-working scars from the original wax and clay maquettes.
When placed in the intense, direct sunlight of Santa Fe's high-altitude environment, these heavily textured surfaces perform a critical visual role. The rough, hand-worked bronze catches the light unevenly, generating deep shadows within the hollows of the muscles and brilliant highlights along the raised ridges of the figure's arms, necklaces, and fringed leggings. This interaction between light and rough metal gives the sculpture a flickering, lifelike quality, making the stationary figure appear to vibrate with spiritual energy as the sun moves across the sky.
Iconography and the Southwestern Landscape Dialogue
The composition of Opening the Heart utilizes a powerful triad of visual elements—the supplicant human figure, the hollow ram skull, and the thriving floral planter—to establish a symbolic dialogue on life, mortality, and transcendence.
The Supplicant Figure
The central figure's physical posture is a universal gesture of surrender and connection to a higher power. By throwing his arms wide and tilting his head completely back, the figure exposes his chest and throat, displaying vulnerability and absolute trust in the cosmos. The closed eyes and slightly parted mouth suggest an internal, meditative state that transcends the physical surroundings, converting the gallery courtyard into a sacred space.
The Bighorn Ram Skull
Positioned at the figure’s feet, the bronze ram skull serves as a classic Southwestern memento mori. It represents the harsh, uncompromising reality of the desert, physical mortality, and the remnants of past life. The contrast between the upright, living posture of the man and the hollow, earthbound skull beneath him emphasizes the cyclical nature of existence.
The Glazed Planter and Living Flora
The inclusion of the glazed ceramic pot, bursting with green grasses and brightly colored wildflowers, acts as a vital counterpoint to the static bronze and dry adobe walls. While the bronze skull represents death and the bronze figure represents spiritual aspiration, the living plants represent the physical renewal of the earth. The dripping blue and red glaze of the pot mimics the colors of water and earth, anchoring the installation to the immediate, tangible ecosystem of the high desert.
Cultural and Architectural Integration on Canyon Road
The placement of Opening the Heart in front of the Legacy Gallery highlights the deliberate spatial curation that defines the Canyon Road art district. By positioning a highly vertical, expressive sculpture against the low, heavy, horizontal planes of a Pueblo Revival adobe building, the curators create a powerful visual tension.
Adobe architecture, rooted in the ancient building traditions of the Pueblo and Spanish cultures, represents a grounded, earthbound aesthetic. The soft mud-plastered walls seem to emerge directly from the soil, emphasizing mass, shelter, and horizontal lines. When Singleton's figure is placed in this context, his upward-reaching arms and skyward gaze break through this horizontal plane, acting as a visual lightning rod that directs the viewer's attention away from the terrestrial architecture and up toward the vast New Mexico sky. This architectural dialogue reinforces the core theme of the sculpture: the human attempt to rise above physical boundaries and establish a direct connection with the infinite.
The most famous street in Santa Fe, New Mexico, is Canyon Road. Located near downtown, this historic half-mile stretch is world-renowned for its high concentration of art galleries, studios, restaurants, and adobe architecture.
www.tripadvisor.com/Attraction_Review-g60958-d117221-Revi...
Over 80 art galleries line this charming Santa Fe street. Make sure you set aside a few hours of your stay to walk down Canyon Road and see the world-class art on display here, which ranges in style from historic Native American art to contemporary painting. In addition to art galleries, you'll also find boutiques and restaurants along Canyon Road. Be sure to take note of the adobe architecture in this atmospheric arts district. Canyon Road has a very long history, and many of today's galleries and shops are located historic buildings that were once homes, schools, or grocery stores. You can wander Canyon Road on your own, or for more insight on the history of the area and the artwork on view, guided tours are available.
New Mexico 2026
Canyon Road Santa Fe
Visual Magick’s Igneous mods for the Kobold are beautiful beyond words! I’m wearing Lava, and its definitely HOT! I had a lot of fun playing with particle fire to take the last 2 photos. :)
Well I’m sure it’s pretty obvious where this started from, not.
It’s another great photographic idea that flopped on implementation and subsequently to be repurposed for Sliders Sunday. Originally it was a picture of water boiling in the bottom of a pan, taken on a whim while on holiday.
Great idea. Pity about the steam clouding the image, lol.
The Topaz Glow filter, for me, is a bit like a banned substance I guess (and I have to guess ;) )...I have withdrawal problems if I don’t get a regular dose of it...
Glow needs two things to work well at this abstract end of its possible uses: some sort of linear structure to seed its collagen building algorithms and some interesting colour. The boiling water (so the idea went) was all interesting circles for the structure, but the question was how to add colour, zap, zing, pizazz and general psychedelia?
So I created a layer formed from two overlaid conical rainbow gradients and blended that with the bubbles using Soft Light. I then used a Mirror distortion filter with 6 mirrors to get the sixfold symmetry (I’ll link to the original bubbles and this interim stage - where you can just still make the bubbles out - in the first comment).
Then the real fun started. Into Topaz Glow starting with one of the Neon presets, and then sliding the sliders to taste…
Back into Affinity Photo for mangling with the hue, saturation, contrast, colour curves (LAB) and a bit of Clarity filter. And there you have it, well apart from a black frame and a blue internal shadow :)
Thanks for taking the time to look. I hope you enjoy the image (legally) :) Happy Sliders Sunday!!
Here is my first attempt at architecture. I admire people who can just take those photos that are perfectly aligned or even know how to edit them so they are straight.
Well I dont know either but I do know that to see all these shapes in one place at a time aligned with the light and shadow is utter magic.
Here is a special thank you to my friend who brought me there. And saw me freaking out at this sight (:
not sure what to say about this image......simply messing around yesterday with old photos and this is one of the things that happened.
some of my long time flickr friends may "get"
this more readily , knowing that most often i
can be found in a garden , either whenever
the seasonal maintenance & climate allows
OR
-- those regions of my mind may propel --
ps: HFF and happy positive resolutions 😃
"Losing someone is like when the sun comes through a window, moving across the room with each hour, until night falls and all you can do is try to remember the soothing shapes it made.” Stewart Lewis
Tacoma waterfront is a great place to vision moody, dramatic waterscape scenes. Soft pastel skies and smooth water work well together.
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All rights reserved © Louis Ruth Photography 2023
I don't know what Marbled Hot Springs Rd. would be without the American Bitterns! While we were there the reeds hadn't had a chance to grow very tall so the Bitterns were pretty easy to spot. Raising their heads up generally in position with the vertical reeds I'm sure they are imagening they are hidden from sight...I didn't realize until this picture what an incredible 'visual perspective' they have of everything around them in this position!
Photographer - Visual Distress MM#510136
Model - Myself - Red Rhapsody MM#375616
Hair/MU/Wardrobe - Myself
Location - Primal Stare Studios
National Visual Arts Gallery, Petronas Towers and Palace of Culture - Titwangsa Lake - Kuala Lumpur.
The Istana Budaya, Kuala Lumpur's source of national pride, is Asia's first and state-of-the-art theatre. It is a venue for musical theatre, opera, and classical concerts in the city. Also seen here are the famous Petronas towers and the National Visual Arts Gallery.
Copyright 2014 - Yen Baet - All Rights Reserved.
DO NOT USE ANY OF MY IMAGES WITHOUT PERMISSION.
Unauthorized use in websites, blogs or any other media, printing, manipulating and reproducing is strictly forbidden.
FYR
Client: Franki Val
New Visual Identity ♥
If you wanna a redesign for your shop/ event./ Club
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