Saturday, March 30, 2013

Friday, March 29, 2013

Latest work: "Upstream"

What I like about this picture is the way I created an aged, weathered, almost Japanese-looking blockprint image. As usual, I've incorporated a lot of my own photos, including photos of string, aged papers, calligraphy, numbers, torn and burned papers, and more. Love the colors! Vivid yet muted somewhat. ©Carol Leigh

Thursday, March 28, 2013

Latest work: "Behind the Screen"

This mixed media piece is composed of photos of ink, rice paper, reflections in water, torn papers, stained papers, and more. (Click to enlarge.) ©Carol Leigh

Wednesday, March 27, 2013

Not a English major . . .

©Carol Leigh

Monday, March 25, 2013

Hawaiian details


You know me . . . can't see the big picture, but I'm good at details. I like the way the palm tree trunk looks almost burnished with gold and then how the thick vine snakes its way up a weathered wall. Lovely Hawaiian details. ©Carol Leigh

Sunday, March 24, 2013

Saturday, March 23, 2013

Latest work: "Washing Ashore"

I was wandering around a boat yard and noticed patterns and scrapings on the side of one boat that intrigued me. I used it for the basis of this piece that calls to mind the earthquake and the resulting tsunami that Japan experienced March 11, 2011. Here on the Oregon coast, two years later, we're discovering boats and sections of docks that have floated across the Pacific to our shores. With these concepts in mind: big waves, floating debris, a vast ocean, two countries connected, I used my photos of boat textures, old Japanese currency, and more to create this picture. ©Carol Leigh

Friday, March 22, 2013

Walking and looking . . .


Walking down a little side street on Maui I spotted this door — I love it! And then there was the delightful surprise of the mannequin in a store window — I have never seen one "tattooed" in such a manner! ©Carol Leigh

Wednesday, March 20, 2013

Iron Heart

Imagine my delight finding this weathered iron heart on a door on Maui! ©Carol Leigh

Tuesday, March 19, 2013

But . . . but . . .




We probably all do it. Warned that no photography is allowed, we always want to shoot the sign that says we can't do what we're doing. Here's my latest batch. One from San Diego (where they at least say thank you), one from Salem, Oregon, another from San Juan Capistrano, and a little more positive message from Portland, Oregon. ©Carol Leigh

Sunday, March 17, 2013

Latest work: "Rust and Walls #1"

Various photos of rust and texture on walls come together here. I like the architectural vibe, the mystery, and (naturally) the texture. Click to enlarge. ©Carol Leigh

Thursday, March 14, 2013

Latest work: "Torn and Burned"

A photomontage containing a variety of photos of torn and burned papers, Egyptian postage stamps from 1888 and 1914, my own handpainted markings, burned cork, and more. I'm particularly fond of the warm colors, the textures, and the overall feeling of age. (Click the photo to enlarge it.) ©Carol Leigh

Monday, March 11, 2013

Hawaiian Eyez



Found in a back alley (and I really mean back alley) on Maui. ©Carol Leigh

Sunday, March 10, 2013

Latest work: "Maui Tropic Green"

This is a combination of my photographs of old papers and a plant I shot in Hawaii. I just uploaded it to my Fine Art America website, as well as a more golden brown variation of the same image. Having way too much fun with all this! ©Carol Leigh

Saturday, March 9, 2013

Latest work: "1959 Japanese Postcard Mail"

As usual, this didn't go exactly as planned. What I began doing at 5 a.m. was simply tweaking a photo I'd taken in Hawaii of a giant bird of paradise plant. And it turned into this. (Click to enlarge.)

That's what I love about what I do. I never know what to expect, what's going to happen. What appears is often a complete surprise. I see a form, a color, a pattern, a texture, and it makes me think of something else, some other photo I have in my collection, and so I begin asking "what if?" What if I add this, try that, erase this, delete that? Hours pass without my realizing it.

I've uploaded this latest image to my website at Fine Art America, where it's currently available. Thanks for looking! ©Carol Leigh

Friday, March 8, 2013

Turtledove

Photographed at a botanical garden on Maui. The treatment I gave it makes me think of a Polaroid transfer. ©Carol Leigh

Wednesday, March 6, 2013

Three more from Maui



Walking around Lahaina early in the morning, before the cruise ship people arrive, before the stores open, before it gets crowded, I find this brightly colored Dumpster enclosure. Love the complementary colors of green and red.

A shop down a side street specializes in shipping pineapples and Maui onions to the mainland. You can also get a cool drink if you wish.

And finally, a wooden statue of King Kamehameha with a sort of wistful look on his face. I can relate. I lived in Hawaii when I was 10, 11, and 12 (a very long time ago). Visiting now, as a tourist, I am really an outsider, melancholy about the Hawaii that's no longer the Hawaii of my youth. And if I feel this way, think of how the native Hawaiians must feel. Auwe!

©Carol Leigh

Monday, March 4, 2013

First three from Maui



We returned home a few hours ago from a delightfully relaxing time on Maui. As I begin processing my photos, I'll share some of them with you. The morning of our first day, I stepped out onto our sixth-floor balcony. Little lights lined the pathway below, trees grew in a receding line along the beach, and Molokai (topped with a layer of clouds) showed hazily in the distance. I purposely  moved the camera during the exposure to achieve this eerie shot. (Basically, it's my answer to "No time to set up the tripod, how can I handhold this and make something interesting?")

A child's flip-flops caught my eye as we walked past a swimming pool.

And a tropical plant against a pale wall glowed in the even light of a little courtyard.

My sincere thanks to two friends who made it possible for me and Chris to have a vacation we will never forget.

©Carol Leigh