i am stuck between here and there
nowhere and everywhere at once
only to realise that
i was slowly dissolving into the fabric
of the universe
a grain of sand
nothing and everything
The day before, we arrived in the town of Graaff-Reinet. It was a lovely artistic town that offered beautiful opportunities to capture its essence. We visited one too many coffee shops, and in these shops, we found beautiful views. It felt like the town absorbed us into its fabric, where we could swim in the artistic essence of what we came to love.
Maybe, we were just on a “coffee high” but it felt like the town had some stories to tell is. In the landscape, dry and barren, we heard the echoes of so many lost souls, guarding the small town against the evils of boredom. In these echoes, we heard poetry and art, the soul of the small town, howling and crying at the same time.
Yet we could also find our own voice between the many screams of unheard potential. I invite you to enjoy these photographs of a stunning little town, focussing a bit more on the photographic beauty than the town itself. At least, this is a post about the small town through my camera lens.
There is a continual pull and push from opposites. I am not sure how to frame it. In fact, I think it escapes the frame. And that is the problem. For if we do not have the abilities to keep something within the borders of understanding, how do we even begin to conceptualise what we are trying to think about?
In one instance, the artwork mimics life, but in the same instance, we begin to mimic art. For, is the two not linked?
In many instances, we are art. But in some others, we forget that art is also part of us. The chiasm, the reversibility of life. We become art, but art also becomes the way we live. In a real instance, the two cannot be separated. As we are looking at art, becoming a spectator, art also starts to mimic us, becoming a secondary gaze through which we see life.
There are always these pushing and pulling contrary forces. It is about finding a strange balance to stabilize them. But I guess finding perfect symmetry is also a myth we tell ourselves.
For now, happy photographing, and keep well!
All of the musings and writings are my own, albeit inspired by art and strange towns. The photographs are my own, taken with my Nikon D300.