An Envy For Solid Ground ..
Is a different kind of art work for me. At times I like to manipulate photos I take and create something new from that which is old. An abstract sort of art piece utilizing real life images. On occasion I create something that really moves me. But will it move others in a similar way?
Will it move others?
I can not answer this question. I'll leave that up to you and will only ask one thing of you while viewing the piece.. Give it time to sink in. Take a few moments to absorb what is happening in the photo and all of those details you may not see right away, but add to the viewing experience. No, there is nothing hidden in the art, just imagination. Let your imagination take you someplace else.
That's the cool thing about art, especially the abstract stuff, one never knows where the journey may lead them.
A Little Background ..
As a child I had a traumatic experience dealing with water .. And ever since I have had this fear of it. Since then I have learned to swim enough to get by, but to this day I still give water the power over me. I dislike boats, the deep end of the swimming pool, dark bottomed lakes, and of course the ocean. Sometimes I have bad dreams about drowning and being suffocated by water.
Sometimes I Feel Like I Can't Escape It ..
In a way this piece gives me to face this fear.. And maybe deep down inside, I need to create more art like this in order to release its hold on me. One may look at this art and feel trapped, which I did to at first glance. I felt my through tighten and my breathing rate increase. There was a tiny spark of anxiety forming from deep within..
Then I changed my outlook..
**I changed my view and thus took away any power the fear was stealing. I saw the safety within the pilings, that are rigid and firmly planted. They aren't blocking my exit out of this water trap, but rather pointing the way to my freedom from within it. It was then when my thoughts began to shift, and only then did I notice the sleeping gull and beautiful reflections that soften the walls of the water box.
My mind was again at ease with the water world.
Okay.. all the drama and self reflection aside..
I really do have a terrible fear of water, and I was moved my this piece in the ways I spoke of above. But lets just leave me and my worries out of this for the moment...
What do you feel when looking at this piece? Does it move you as well or have I just created another boring abstract piece of art?
Have you ever been 'Moved' by a particular work of art?
I am NOT the only one around here who dislikes water...
'An Envy For Solid Ground' ~ by BDMiller
I went to sleep the night before
And woke the next day paralyzed and wet
I had dreamt about sinking to the bottom
I dreamt about falling into the deep
I dreamt about my lungs filling with water
Over and over again until they could no more
It was just about over when I had awaken
I lay there thinking about it in vividness
I was letting it control my emotions
I had let it in to incubate its madness
I sat up and planted my feet on solid ground
Looking at the art and realizing something
I realized that I created this fear
I also see that the fear is my anchor
I cut the braided rope tied to my feet
I remove the false reality perceived as a life vest
Sinking wasn't an option anymore
I remembered I could swim just fine
I laid back down and drifted back to sleep
The waves swept in and carried me to sea
I no longer had an 'Envy For Solid Ground'
Yeah.. You got a poem out of me too. I guess you could call it a poem. Maybe we should just call it creative writing.
Thank you for swinging by my blog and checking out the post. Have a great day!
All words, pictures and art pieces are the sole property of B D Miller Gallery, unless otherwise noted and credited, and are not to be reproduced or copied without the prior written consent of B D Miller Gallery.
The Orchid Lovers Community!
Love Orchids? Consider joining our community. We look forward to seeing you there!!!
The Orchid Lovers Community
A place for people who Love Orchids!
I think you did really well on this. I do find it moving... but more meaningful and moving with your story to go with it. I think facing the fear and expressing it through art is a great way to have some healing.
I was just talking in a comment on a post here last curation round about teeth. I had a recurring nightmare about getting my teeth knocked out. For years it was always just a little different but with similar outcomes. I would pluck them out after getting hit in the mouth. I could feel the roots pop when i would pluck them out. Or, i would spit a few of them out into my hand. I could taste the metallic flavor in my blood and could tongue the holes left behind. It was as real as could be. I often would have the dream end with me looking into a puddle of blood in my cupped palm and multiple teeth sitting in my hand. It wasn't until i drew an artwork based on the dream that i stopped having the dream. I've never had it since finishing that artwork.
This image you have created is disorienting like being underwater. But, there seems to be an open channel in the middle. It reminded me of a time when i almost drowned as a lifeguard. There were only two of us lifeguards on duty before the L shaped pool was about to close. I just got off the stand and we had our deep end on one side of the L closed. So, being the guard i was over there by myself with the guard on stand sitting with her back turned to my end of the pool.
For some dumb reason i decided to see how many flips i could do underwater. I broke my record but almost passed out. I rushed to the surface to find myself upside down and i hit my head on the bottom. It didn't knock me out but i didn't think i was going to have the time to turn around and get back to the surface. I thrust myself as best i could and made it just in time before the gasp. If i had gasped underwater... i probably would have drowned before they noticed me over there in the deepend.
So, this image brought back that memory. I have never feared water... but i do have a very healthy respect for it. Thanks for sharing your poem and art and experience of overcoming fear with us here in this community!
Holy cow! Now that's a comment!! lol. or a novel.. lol 😆😁 Thank you for taking the time to tell me about your experiences. Sometimes when I write something like this, and put personal stuff out there for all to read, it's a very vulnerable feeling. I think we as humans, feel better about ourselves and can more easily relate with others, if we allow ourselves these moments of opening up. So... Thank you for catching that and responding with compassion and truth 😊.
I think when you said, " I have never feared water... but i do have a very healthy respect for it", I found that I can relate to this. Maybe my fear is less of a true fear and more of a respect at this point. I find that it's always in the back of my mind and one of the first things I think of when around or near the water. So maybe the fear has subsided over the years but the "Healthy Respect" is still quite there.
Your a crazy dude! That story about doing flips in the pool and almost passing out is nuts.. I could so picture you doing that still. I bet your thinking right now that maybe you could beat that record yet again if you had a little time to train. hehe. Oh yeah... And The Teeth Dream.. Still have the chills thinking about that. Glad I only dream of drowning and lungs filling with water... Much better than teeth in hand and blood everywhere! 😳
Thanks again for taking the time to make me feel at home here in the community 😊
You are very welcome my friend. I won't respond with a sequel to the novel... but i will say that i think facing fear is important. Expressing my teeth dream/nightmare via artistic expression set that mentality free. I was never afraid of losing teeth so i don't know where the dream originated... but dealing with it through the art made it go away.
Your experience sounded like some trauma was involved and that can leave a very lasting imprint. So, i was happy to see you express yourself about it in your art here. I do agree with you about the aspect of being vulnerable and opening up also setting things bottled up free.
Much love to you brother! Have a great weekend and i'm sure i'll be seeing you around! hahaha
I think this is really awesome. I love the feel of it all around. I could totally see it being an album cover or something like that. I had a traumatic incident with water when I was younger too. Probably not as bad as yours since I don't mind the water so much now and I love boating and fishing. I did fail swimming class when I was a kid because of it though...
Thanks! I was thinking the same.. an album cover, then I realized something. Do they even still make album covers? lol. We are so old school you and I. Maybe they don't even exists anymore. hehehe.
I'll go on boats and what not, but it is always there in my mind.. the fear of what if. I hate it but seems to never leave me. I don't let the fear keep me off a boat though, so that's good I think. Guess we have more in common than we realized. Lots of stuff to talk about whenever we sit down for a whisky! You never know.. it could happen 😁
Haha, yeah, maybe some day! They do still make albums actually. A lot of artists have been releasing their stuff on vinyl again!
By looking at the portrait, I feel stuck in space.
Ahhh... Perfect! That's how I felt too, well sort of. I felt stuck in water space. lol 😁
much relatable😇
@silentbot star 3
3 Stars! Better than 2 😁 - Thank you for the support and the Stars! 😊
The rewards earned on this comment will go directly to the person sharing the post on Twitter as long as they are registered with @poshtoken. Sign up at https://hiveposh.com.