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All woods are slightly different depending on the climate, soil and native plants. This one has a fairy tale quality I have not experienced before. https://www.amyragus.com/plight-of-the-headless-man https://images.on-this.website/25140_11653054615310a00aa3a6b.jpgPlight of the headless man, Salem Poster design by GASworks proprietor the late, great Dann Maurno. https://www.amyragus.com/new-friend-salem https://images.on-this.website/25140_152342455310a009d3514.jpgNew friend, Salem (Halloween opening parade) https://www.amyragus.com/red-yellow-green https://images.on-this.website/25140_5689968805a107cbd9768c.jpgRed, Yellow, Green [b]Image #4 - Red Yellow Green - November 2016[/b] I caught this scene in early November. The light snow emphasized the triad of colors. Red, Yellow, Green, Yellow, Red. [i]Is that tree weeping?[/i] Van Gogh writes: "How wonderful yellow is. It stands for the sun." These are cheerful words from an artist whose work sometimes seems manic. Yellow also means change and refers to health. Who am I kidding here... I am angry. https://www.amyragus.com/myakka https://images.on-this.website/25140_2058903427531b63f7ceec0.jpgAlong the Myakka River, Sarasota https://www.amyragus.com/truro-center-for-the-arts https://images.on-this.website/25140_20144178956388cfe8081ff.jpgTruro Center for the Arts Image title: Long Beach Gloucester, MA Thoreau visited Cape Ann on several occasions. https://www.amyragus.com/night-dancer https://images.on-this.website/25140_15507808785310a15324601.jpgNight Dancer https://www.amyragus.com/encounter-may-2020-arboretum https://images.on-this.website/25140_1996997964607b1914a772c.jpgMay 2020 - Arnold Arboretum - Title: Sprite This child stopped to speak with me one morning. I was, to be honest, thrilled. Her guardian was off stage right pushing a baby in a pram. We exchanged park talk and eventually the adult in charge wanted to leave. The child did not. Such perfection in a day was not to be missed. After a bit the sprite scooted off with a wave and "See you tomorrow." I was working on two other images that included people in masks. I decided they really bothered me -- in fact, made me cringe. The only reason I kept this one, is because I wanted to remember my encounter. It was a gift. https://www.amyragus.com/dejueuner-greely-falls-detail https://images.on-this.website/25140_18039580315766feeb78891.jpgDejueuner, Garwin Falls (detail) https://www.amyragus.com/ascenddescend-sept-17-2016 https://images.on-this.website/25140_8652456855a1ece78e0ab2.jpgAscend/Descend Sept 17, 2016 Image #1 - Ascend/Descend - September 2017 This is an imagining of my September 2016 blackout and crashing descent off the road. I completed this image 14 months later in October/November 2017 For 12 months after my accident I imagined my drive into this ditch -[i] over[/i] and [i]over[/i] and [i]over[/i] again. But I was only ready to visit the site a year after the event. I met and spoke with the woman who had seen my car and called 911, the first savior in this story. I had been prescribed a new medication for a congenital heart condition (HCM) and on the third morning of taking the drug, I experienced sudden cardiac arrest while driving. I was in good shape at the time, swimming laps 3x a week. The woman who had seen the accident directed me to the location. Climbing down I found where I had been wedged in by trees after I careened off the road. There was evidence of the limbs cut down to free my car. The Wrentham Police and Fire Departments acted brilliantly to get my heart going and evacuate me by helicopter to Boston. So now, what was I after as I wandered around? I shot photo frames randomly with no sense of what I was looking at. I was nervous and left quickly. What are you doing here Amy? As I put the piece together I was unable to come to any clear resolution. The last thing I wanted to make was a pretty picture. I had made plenty of those. What I was seeking were answers. But answers to what? Later, during a group meditation, I tried to visualize my journey with my memory of this site. I kept falling into the darkness at the center of my unfinished collage. This process sparked an unexpected out-of-body response -- a lightening fast manifestation helped me finish the image. And those questions... One of the frames from this photo shoot accidentally clipped my face as I pointed the camera upwards. I decided to use this shot to represent my presence. I was completely unconscious and was told by my doctors that I had died instantly. But I was still there. https://www.amyragus.com/the-dentist https://images.on-this.website/25140_13998571795310a0122b551.jpgThe dentist https://www.amyragus.com/ar-18-tablelands-newfoundland-20012014 https://images.on-this.website/25140_599768663534ebbc13a937.jpgTablelands, Gros Morne National Park This image is on the road to the entrance to the Tablelands at Gros Morne. This piece was shot in 2000 but not completed until 2014. It is a continuous collage employing approx 70 separate 35mm photo frames shot with film. I scanned the negatives recently and made a continuous collage using Photoshop. The only non-continuous piece is the fragment of my photo bag in the left foreground. https://www.amyragus.com/big-falls-vermont https://images.on-this.website/25140_6917258525766cf1fabff6.jpgBig Falls, Vermont Almost on the Canadian Border, Big Falls is hard to access for an unobstructed view. In this case in order to get closer I would have had to jump over a small ravine (right corner) to the furthest rock outcropping. I decided not to and had to make the best of it. https://www.amyragus.com/ginger-flower-hawaii https://images.on-this.website/25140_11601617026232360397102.jpgGinger Flower Hawaii Torch Ginger and volcanic mound. Watercolor on paper 1998. A man with a scythe handed me this wonderful ginger bloom. He was clearing part of a field where there were many. It was happy in a tub of water for many days. https://www.amyragus.com/the-lookout-marconi-beach-cape https://images.on-this.website/25140_133582975664bc4bfc316d.jpgThe Lookout - Marconi Beach, Cape Cod (#4) Although I visited Marconi Beach to walk the White Cedar Trail, the lure of an ocean vista was stronger. There is something dangerously romantic about high cliffs, howling wind, and pounding waves. Travel guides point out that nearby is the site of the first wireless transatlantic telegraph achieved by Guglielmo Marconi on Jan 19, 1903, at what was named Marconi Station. Although Marconi's particular technology became obsolete fairly quickly, it is considered a seminal beginning of wireless technology, which eventually was key to sea voyage rescue. Having spent time on Cape Ann, Nantucket, Newfoundland, and Oregon shores, the rigors of early ocean commerce are embedded in my consciousness. And images based on improbable lore -- that "widow's walks" were constructed so wives could scan the coast for returning husbands, or that pirates and wreckers used coastal sites to lure vessels with lanterns --- are indelible. In my "Lookout, Marconi Beach" a leafless figure is signaling to the horizon. This image is what was simply there for me to capture, but perhaps my path to it was also a longing -- a personal request to the infinite and unknowable. "Hello, do you read me?" https://www.amyragus.com/looking-for-spring-march-2020 https://images.on-this.website/25140_200729365603157cb7590c.jpgMarch 2020 - Arnold Arboretum - Title: Looking for Spring When I finished this image in May 2020 I posted it on my News Feed and this is what I wrote then: "I flip frequently from thinking about the acute problems of the pandemic to reminding myself to stop and turn away. I go to empty spaces and landscape riffs to try to forget and recharge. But can I really forget? Below is another collage from mid-March. I hesitate to post or publish images that I feel might be exploiting individuals who just happened to be within my camera range. I was concentrating on the trees as I rummaged around off the path, searching for signs of Spring. As I panned left I caught the family -- but felt I was intruding. Reality is sending messages I suppose. On this day I was confronted with the importance of a place to go during this crisis. I was also confronted with runners and children not practicing social distancing and I became edgy and tense. The bare trees reflect the vulnerability of our human existence in the face of this virus. We are without armor against a disease that has already killed so many. Bent and reaching, the trees speak to each other and to me of our universal weakness. Any strength comes from within the roots and marrow of our ability to care for others." And now: A year later in April 2021 I am vaccinated and at times I feel more hopeful. But I don't think I am any less emotional when this image triggers my memories. https://www.amyragus.com/remember-april https://images.on-this.website/25140_17296943835ffe1bc071419.jpgRemember April [b]Image #11 Remember - April 2017[/b] Finally it is Spring. The docs convened on my case and I have been told I can drive again. So ok, now what? I feel anxious about leaving my beautiful prison. Every April the bulbs that my mother gave me 30 years ago bloom and every year I am reminded of her. I wish I could call her and have a funny chat about all this. Maybe she could help me figure out who or what had saved me? I can hear her say in her fake mafia voice "Forget about it." Because my accident caused temporary memory loss, my thoughts rattle around a bit, like dice. Those dice have mostly fallen away, but with the shake up I am remembering forgotten scenes from my early childhood. A friendly spirit in Nana's attic? And a few other zingers that seemed perfectly normal at the time. One day I recalled the scene of what I think of as my first memory. I was lying in a baby carriage looking around. I can clearly remember the sides and edges of the carriage. I was gazing up at the tall trees above me. Safe and sound I was. https://www.amyragus.com/turquoise-and-gold-outer-cape https://images.on-this.website/25140_3792902066388cf2bbd20a.jpgBrain Storms Cape Cod (#7) In November the dune grass is golden having lost most of its summer green, while the ever-changing sky projects a moving pattern on surfaces below. When I could see any blue sky I took to the coast. In this composition, the ocean has turned cerulean where the sun breaks through. The alchemy of weather conditions creates a kaleidoscope of tints and tones. The grey clouds take on washes of blue and the grasses show warm notes of red and yellow. But a moment later all can move towards flat monochrome. Thoreau was mesmerized by this landscape. He gets lost in recalling the colors he observes. In the [i]Beach Again[/i] chapter he describes the ever-changing color of the sea. "There were distinct patches of the color of a purple grape with the bloom rubbed off." He notes green, blue, silvery, dark blue, and wine colors. He writes "Again we took to the beach for another day (Oct 13), walking along the shore of the resounding sea, determined to get it into us." Chapter 9 The Sea and the Desert. In the final pages of [i]Cape Cod[/i], Thoreau travels back to Boston by sea and he recommends to his readers a visit to Cape Cod in the Fall or Winter. Although he predicts vacation compounds being built for pleasure seekers, with Thoreau the landscape or in this case, the sea-scape is no trivial matter for mere enjoyment. He compares the Cape shoreline with as many as he is familiar with and announces Cape Cod as the clear winner. Why exactly? Well, that is what Thoreau seems to be struggling to digest as he walks, and ruminates. [i]Cape Cod[/i] for me is an ongoing battle between the destructive forces of the ocean and the sublime power of the infinite found in the natural world. In the end, Thoreau chooses the latter as his final assessment. With a sense of respect, he allows the habits of the native Cape Cod residents to clinch the deal. Thoreau writes: "As for the view, the keeper of the light, with one or more of his family, walks out to the edge of the bank after every meal to look off, just as if they had not lived there all their day. In short, it will wear well. And what picture will you substitute for that, upon your walls?" No matter how many lives have been taken by its power, the sight of the sea is an elixir, a refreshment, and a visual poem to be recited over and over again. https://www.amyragus.com/the-larch-brothers-november-2020 https://images.on-this.website/25140_1046428365604e18cbe8541.jpgNovember 2019 - Arnold Arb - Title: The Larch Brothers On a visit in November 2019, I went to find the larches. As I was looking at my map, a group of regulars approached and we chatted about which paths I should take. "Go up Peters Hill first" they suggested. I have been fond of larches since making friends with one at Walden Pond. Larches are not evergreens and their needles turn yellow-gold in the Winter. In this image left of center, there is a group of happy visitors coming down from the lookout where you can see a wide view of the city of Boston. https://www.amyragus.com/imu-earth-oven-hawaiil https://images.on-this.website/25140_5530840753111f09e3d1c.jpgIMU (Earth Oven), Hawaii This collage was shot in 1998 with film. I was at a remote artist retreat on the southeast coast of the Big Island of Hawaii. On my second night, I awoke to an earthquake. I was alone in a free-standing cottage, with no cell phone or internet. I was soon to learn that Kilauea had erupted. This retreat, a nonprofit enclave in Puna is about 30 miles away from the volcano as the crow flies. This area is not insurable because of Kilauea. The lava from the volcano flows into the ocean along this coast. Early on my trip, I shot the image above as I toured the area and saw fields of cold lava that cover vast areas from previous eruptions. Later I would hire a guide who took me to view the active lava flow at night. We drove directly over the dark cold lava to where we were nearby and could view the lava falling into the ocean. The red molten lava breaks up to form black sand beaches. The shots under my steering wheel are from the lava I viewed directly. The clouds in this image are steam clouds and not weather clouds. https://www.amyragus.com/off-road-nantucket-ma https://images.on-this.website/25140_4511477215ffb2bdc5190b.jpgOff Road, Nantucket, MA [b]Image #13 Off Road, Nantucket - June 2017[/b] No more excuses. And nobody wants to hear about my problems. I decide I am strong enough for a residency. My last visit to Nantucket was 2002. I still have sense enough to get out of town, and I am not flying to Zambia. Day One I drive around the Island. I think I recognize a marker and make a U-turn - veering off Polpis to Alter Rock. Earlier in the Spring after I started driving again I had some nerves. This I did not expect. On my first highway ride, I had to take the next exit -- "WILL MY HEART KEEP GOING?" I spit at laughing ghosts. But now a few weeks later on Nantucket, "I-am-fine," and this is my first off-roading. I have no map, no turnarounds, -- - no fear -- - https://www.amyragus.com/sparrow https://images.on-this.website/25140_9088511695322310d29999.jpgSparrow https://www.amyragus.com/dejeuner-greely-falls-nh https://images.on-this.website/25140_7106362125766fe4a185c0.jpgDejeuner, Garwin Falls, NH Another piece shot at Garwin Falls in New Hampshire. This piece is a less dramatic view of this paradise on a second visit. It shows the central falls and small tributaries ending in a large swimming area that is easily accessed. Known only by the locals as a place to bathe in the nude, I chanced on two young women eating lunch. They were silhouetted perfectly and the bright red towel was a gift from the gods. Behind them a man was watching. Did he come here often? https://www.amyragus.com/just-a-walk-march-2019 https://images.on-this.website/25140_1538906482603157c873a50.jpgMarch 2020 - Arnold Arboretum - Title: Just a walk March 9, 2020. My first shoot after recovering from what I believe was a bout of Covid that came in early February about 10 days after I enjoyed 3 packed events. In retrospect I feel very lucky I didn't know at the time what my very odd symptoms meant. I hadn't had the flu for 30 years..... March had brought a spell of balmy weather and I ventured out to the Arboretum in search of early flowering trees and witch-hazel specimens (see golden blooms left of path). "Just a Walk" became an important phrase for me. On this day instead of thinking of the Arboretum as a nature preserve with specimen trees, I began to appreciate it more as a sanctuary for walkers. https://www.amyragus.com/mirage-cape-cod https://images.on-this.website/25140_339654488638e17f5edc9e.jpgMirage, Cape Cod (#6) On his visits to Cape Cod Thoreau walked the shoreline and became conversant with its ways. His observations speak inadvertently or directly to the gap between the Cape landscape and the one he traversed in Concord. Thoreau points out that on the beach objects he sees from a distance appear large, but their scale is diminished at close range. In the Plains of Nauset Chapter, he writes: "A solitary traveler whom we saw perambulating in the distance loomed like a giant. ... Men and boys would have appeared alike at a little distance, there being no object by which to measure them. Indeed to an inlander the cape landscape is a constant mirage." As a beach walker, I have experienced this scale shifting as part of the terrain. I may spot rocks or driftwood from afar and am surprised to find them far less commanding when I am closer. This phenomenon seems to be somewhat elusive and descriptions of it can include the power of the mind to hone in on what is being observed. One can google Ponzo Illusion and other visual "tricks" that defy factual reality. Thoreau includes detailed descriptions of his "mirage" encounters in his Cape essays. In my photocollage here there are no familiar references for scale. In this vast, abstract setting I am imagining this to be an ancient stone burial Cairn on the plains of Egypt. But upon closer examination or viewing from a different direction, it may reduce to a small, lumpy mass. The approach from a distance enhances the impression in the mind and imagination. And these impressions are constantly shifting with every step taken. As an artist, I may favor what my mind chooses to remember. Thoreau's detailed visual observations seem to mingle with my perceptions of space and scale, and a melting of fact into fantasy which seems to occur more readily in this landscape where the horizon line is there to bend. Thoreau certainly was an artist with words, and I can imagine him finding a rustic Cape cottage and taking up easel painting or photography in his " third act." -- -- Or is the sun in my eyes? https://www.amyragus.com/october-2019-arnold-arboretum-boston https://images.on-this.website/25140_1497247079607312a140417.jpgOctober 2019 - Arnold Arboretum, Boston - Title: Tree Play The next 20 images are collages shot at the Arnold Arboretum in Boston between October 2019 and August 2020. They appear as a digital show "A Walk in the Arboretum" April 29-July 18, 2021. The pandemic impacted my images as it impacted all of our lives. A digital sequence was not my intention for this exhibition. My plan was to hang large color prints of 5 park locations. This would not have worked digitally so when I was offered a time slot for this show I went with plan B -- a sequence of whatever images I could finish from the Arboretum. The arc of the pandemic then became part of my show. "Tree Play" above was from my first pre-pandemic visit. Visitors were enjoying the fall colors, walking, playing, or simply relaxing along the pathways. I spoke with a dog walker and retrieved a frisbee (somewhat pathetically). It was a day in the park, and what a park. This particular tree was a magnet for visitors. https://www.amyragus.com/finis-arnold-arboretum-title-earth https://images.on-this.website/25140_935659440607313dbf27b8.jpgFinis -Arboretum May 2020 Title: The earth above, the the sky below Another title for this collage fantasy is "The Triumph of Spring." Spring came in 2020. I remember it did. Nothing could stop it. May flowers are beacons of hope and renewal, and they are quietly nurtured in this sanctuary. Here, a lone walker passes under a blooming canopy while a peony floats above all the shuffling below. "Rock's Peony" was brought back to the Arnold Arboretum from China by Joseph Rock in the 1930s. Further afield is the flower of the Chinese Dove Tree soaring out of bounds -- and I can imagine leaving the earth to a higher realm. For me, this photographic record of my spent afternoon is somewhere I can pause to ponder my place between the sky and the earth -- and walk on healing passageways. https://www.amyragus.com/ginger-flower-big-island-hawaii https://images.on-this.website/25140_589962476623231b1810f2.jpgGinger Flower, Big Island, Hawaii Crepe Ginger pencil on paper - drawn from life on the Big Island of Hawaii 1998 https://www.amyragus.com/winter-pearl https://images.on-this.website/25140_7829897155310a15779112.jpgWinter Pearl https://www.amyragus.com/human-statue-salem-for-16 https://images.on-this.website/25140_1663782240532707fd14436.jpgFor tips (Salem Human Statue) - detaill This is the fabulous Cady V who in my mind established the human statue craze in Salem, MA. I shot this in 2009 and included the building behind as it is so quintessentially Salem. I purposely avoided other figures as I felt Cady deserved to be seen as a sculpture - dignified and haunting. Alas, Cady has retired but was gracing Essex Street for several years - I am not certain how many. A young person's game - Cady stood on a wood crate for hours, and October weather can get harsh and windy. The day I was here was early in the season - a Thursday in mid-October. People came in and out of view, but sparsely. On a late afternoon on the final weekends, Cady would be mobbed by admirers. Her tip box was fairly discrete. Believe it or not, these human statues can make a reasonable living at this. However, the number of statues has increased with the number of tourists. Human displays have become at times garish and commercial, but still loads of fun. Truly artful performances are rare. https://www.amyragus.com/bastion-falls https://images.on-this.website/25140_4426436575b96722a75f4a.jpgBastion Falls 2017 My first waterfall shoot on my trip. This is Bastion Falls - the lower falls to the famous Kaaterskill. It is September and the water is running low. I photographed this site from at least 4 vantage points, this being the last. At the kiosk - distant right - are two climbers I am to meet later on up at Kaaterskill. From this vantage point I am able to capture the poetic meanderings of the water over the rocks. https://www.amyragus.com/along-the-old-road-fruitlands https://images.on-this.website/25140_1972086425311e00996f9d.jpgAlong the old road -Fruitlands This route - "the old road" - to the Fruitlands site is a passageway wide enough for horse-pulled vehicles. As I walked the large boulder came into view. I could imagine that this marker would assure travelers that they were on the right path and soon they would be at their destination. At the time I was uncertain but had some general directions. I was without cell phone or GPS and had a few choices to make as I proceeded. There is a certain faith and intuition that one must rely upon when sign markers and maps are absent. I wish we could go back to that time - not so long ago but seems so very far away - when our brains and heart would carry us safely to our desired destinations. https://www.amyragus.com/3-afternoon-moulin-a-nef https://images.on-this.website/25140_17643843055314fc7881cff.jpgAfternoon - Moulin a Nef, Auvillar https://www.amyragus.com/pilgrimage-to-yellow-spring-arboretum https://images.on-this.website/25140_439688707603157cc70400.jpgApril 2020 - Arnold Arboretum - Title: Pilgrimage to Yellow A Sunday at the Arboretum with people arriving to find cheerful bursts of yellow Forsythia. Many are walking alone or in pairs. I remember stepping aside here as a group came towards me. Others are also moving off the paths to remove themselves from possibly dangerous encounters with other humans. I am here desperate to drink the tonic of pure color. https://www.amyragus.com/at-duck-harber-beach-outer https://images.on-this.website/25140_1769977977639b4886df155.jpgAt Duck Harbor Beach, Outer Cape Cod Massachusetts (#8) Another day at the artist camp, and I pick a spot on the map bay side. The surf here is calmer and the water warmer than on the Atlantic coast. As I drive the long access road to the shore the clouds seem to thicken. I see a small parking lot and then take the path toward the view. The dune mounds look like they could use a trim, and a somber chill pervades. I shoot a panoramic sweep of the ocean to help me remember where I have been. The air is getting damp and I am leaving, but then a dog suddenly appears, as dogs sometimes do. She stops, sits, and seems to doze off. I resist closing my eyes... and wait. A bit of time passes and I see a figure emerge from behind the sand. On cue, the dog stands and the pair move off together. https://www.amyragus.com/the-beach-cape-cod https://images.on-this.website/25140_1877510395664bc45ff3df7.jpgThe Beach, Cape Cod (#3) Thoreau often used the word "desert" to describe the beaches on the outer Cape. This is Ballston Beach, Truro. A walker heads out on a clear but brisk November afternoon. Coastal erosion is evident in the dunes and cliffs, and houses are perched facing the onslaught. I wonder how many more years these structures can stand against the inevitable. I see a large piece of driftwood resting in a shallow before it is perhaps tossed back to sea. In Thoreau's time hundreds of ships, their cargo, and passengers were broken by the weather to be thrown ashore or lost. "Wreckers" as they were called flocked to retrieve and salvage what they could. We might call this "recycling" or something else. Booty strewn on this desert could be spied from a distance as the wrecker's eyes were keen. This was a common profession in these parts, with survival dependent on clear vision and quick action. Wood was particularly valuable. Thoreau of all people had an eye. In the woods and fields his observations are legendary and honed into an art that has not been matched. In the Outer Cape's pared-down and even terrifying environment, Thoreau was fast able to navigate the impact such a place might have on the human temperament. On a stagecoach ride to Brewster Thoreau had proximity to watch the natives at close range. He writes "I was struck by the pleasant equality which reigned among the stage company, and their broad and invulnerable good humor" with one fellow passenger Thoreau described as a "red-faced Cape Cod man who had seen too many storms to be easily irritated..." https://www.amyragus.com/race-point-provincetown-ma-the https://images.on-this.website/25140_7510605416387ae8336e6c.jpgRace Point, Provincetown, MA (#2) My first coastline shoot was in Provincetown. I drove into the parking lot at Race Point Beach, finding it sand-blown and deserted. As I moved through the dunes towards the breakers I was hit with sharp gusts of wind and struggled to keep standing. The seagrass was being tossed about without breaking, looking softly inviting in my photographs. Meanwhile, the ocean appeared almost black and was moving quickly as the clouds overhead were indeed racing against the shoreline. As I walked quickly back to my SUV I noticed a car parked nearby. When I expressed my surprise to see anyone else out for a stroll, the couple explained that they returned to Race Point annually to revisit the site where they were married. I could appreciate their dedication to this full-body ritual. https://www.amyragus.com/october-2019-arnold-arboretum-title https://images.on-this.website/25140_14020168196047a046ab0c3.jpgOctober 2019 - Arnold Arboretum - Title: Fade to Grey It was still pre-Covid when I put this collage together in 2019. This is a "continuous" collage of about 25+ frames. I was not happy with this image and it certainly would not have made the cut for my planned show. To save this scene I made an intuitive choice to place snowflakes in the sky. The pastel flakes were meant to represent the passage of time and possibly "energize" the image. "Colorful Fall would quickly fade to grey" was my rescue move. I tried it out, dismissed it, and moved on. Had I saved it? I didn't think so--it seemed considerably worse. Opening the file again 8 months later in June 2020 - I was taken aback. By the Spring of 2020, I was on edge for obvious reasons, like everyone else. Instantaneously I read something else in the innocent spiky shapes. https://www.amyragus.com/hello-i-am-here https://images.on-this.website/25140_14723383885a1edcc368538.jpgHello. I am here. [b]Image #9 Hello, I am here - February 2017 [/b] This is a shot out of my upstairs window towards the road. It is February and the storms have come a few in a row. I settle in with books, movies, internet, phone, netflix.... silence. This is technically "the terror time" here on the farm. But I must not be. * The snow-dusted power line looks like a tightrope to me, and it reminds me that if I were a squirrel I could escape easily. Oh, maybe ten years ago a pack of squirrels broke into my attic moving along that very route. I let them stay the winter so they might live. The critter buster people told me they would have to kill them. One day I noticed one was gnawing through the dry wall and a groping paw appeared. .. ha. In the spring I set out a trap on the porch roof you can barely see here, and relocated them quickly to the same spot. Then I patched the gutter. * "The Terror Time" song by Ewan MacCall The lyrics recall winters for those without means-- wthout shelter. https://www.amyragus.com/highfield-hall-to-send https://images.on-this.website/25140_44719992953694ffc4dc7c.jpgGypsy's Staircase- Highfield Hall This image was part of a one-person show at Highfield Hall, Falmouth Ma, and also included in the Environmental Exhibit "Portals and Passageways" which was largely outdoors. My image was used for the back cover of the exhibit catalog. The link to Highfield Hall and Gardens is via www.highfieldhallandgardens.org Specifics on my 2014 shows are no longer available, but past shows are listed by year. Link is good for current/recent activities at Highfield. https://www.amyragus.com/frankenstein-civilized-salem https://images.on-this.website/25140_15058785795310a004956c9.jpgFrankenstein civilized, Salem This was my first shoot in Salem proper. On this day I was walking towards the action, and a polite Frankenstein stopped to let me do my thing. Behind him are the Blues Brothers which dates this photo to 2009. The white rabbit was another gift, welcoming me to this silly seasonal parade. This series has grown to at least 3 times the number of images I have on this gallery, as I stopped posting the material in 2014 (note 2022 - new gallery posted on this website, but there is more). The window of opportunity for this subject is limited. Ideally, the best light is between 3 and 6 pm so the time frame is also short. Displays are not put up in the suburbs until mid to late October. Although Salem is predictably ripe with subject matter I prefer to find out-of-the-way home displays and seasonal rural sites. People are inspired to feed their ghoulish funny bones even if only the neighbors will see. Home-crafted expressions are very hard to find and I will sometimes simply pick a neighborhood or location and drive around. Generally, Halloween is a month-long party that we can collectively participate in - harmless and funny. I shy away from the gruesome stuff but a bit of a scare is ok with me. https://www.amyragus.com/arnold-arboretum-december-2019 https://images.on-this.website/25140_995061149603157c69b4cf.jpgJanuary 2020 - Arnold Arboretum - Dusk By mid afternoon the light disappears quickly. https://www.amyragus.com/assessing-the-damage https://images.on-this.website/25140_1755751175a1080e5bb7f1.jpgAssessing the damage [b]Image #5 - Assessing the Damage - December 2016[/b] It is December and I cross over my property line, still not far from my house. Winter so far has been kind and I am walking a bit farther. With the light snow I can see more clearly the damage that has been done to a fallen tree. Mostly I am in denial as to the damage done to my own body. I look back towards my house and ponder who is sheltered there. https://www.amyragus.com/following-henry-cape-cod-massachusetts https://images.on-this.website/25140_4115813646380ea9c4f704.jpgFollowing Henry, Cape Cod, Massachusetts (#1) In November 2018 I spent two weeks on the Outer Cape at the Truro Center for the Arts. One intention was to reflect on Henry Thoreau's coastal observations that were published as "[i]Cape Cod[/i]." My goal as an artist-in-residence was to study the landscape and gather material with my camera. As a tourist, I was hoping for pleasant weather, random conversations, and some local seafood. I had been surprised by Thoreau's descriptions of extreme ocean conditions, vast deserted beaches, and the human debris coughed up by shipwrecks. Although exploring the Concord woods with Thoreau was comfortably familiar, his essays in [i]"Cape Cod"[/i] could be unnerving. Thoreau's last sentence in Chapter 4 (The Beach) is unapologetic. He writes: "But I did not intend this for a sentimental journey." I was following Henry but was thinking I would keep him at a reasonable distance. Thoreau begins his story by describing the aftermath of a shipwreck in Cohasset, MA in Oct 1849. The ferry to Provincetown had been delayed and Thoreau took the opportunity to visit the destruction of the St. John from Galway with a death toll of 99. He walked the Cohasset shoreline strewn with the resulting debris, encountering those searching for salvage or bodies. Thoreau was to witness similar devastation on Fire Island, NY soon after in July 1850. What was I hoping would come ashore on my outer Cape jaunt, and could I keep the shipwrecks at bay? I left my copy of [i]Cape Cod[/i] in my SUV. https://www.amyragus.com/outer-cape-race-point-provincetown https://images.on-this.website/25140_8128647766388bf96b7dfc.jpgOuter Cape- Race Point, Provincetown https://www.amyragus.com/levitate https://images.on-this.website/25140_274978982532231097b71d.jpgLevitate https://www.amyragus.com/listening-garden-in-the-woods https://images.on-this.website/25140_417335115642f70fb8874f.jpgListening (Garden in the Woods) Watercolor and pencil on paper. From plein air sketch. https://www.amyragus.com/time https://images.on-this.website/25140_3085683915310a155ae5fc.jpgTime https://www.amyragus.com/orchid-newfoundland https://images.on-this.website/25140_15476361196232324882ad6.jpgOrchid -Newfoundland Watercolor on paper 2001 https://www.amyragus.com/katterskill-creek-2021 https://images.on-this.website/25140_1671716186216a89b883a6.jpgKatterskill Creek 2021 https://www.amyragus.com/fleeting https://images.on-this.website/25140_1983041325b9688db869f4.jpgFleeting 2017 Driving back to Catskill from a photo shoot my eye was again riveted by the color yellow. I pulled off the road and shot this collage along the barrier. It is mid September and I know these wild beauties will wither to brown at the first frost. https://www.amyragus.com/meyer-and-palms https://images.on-this.website/25140_164442094362323d4f2c3c4.jpgMeyer and palms pencil on paper. Florida Meyer lemon and night beach. Sketch finished on site at the Hermitage in Englewood, Florida - night view to the gulf. https://www.amyragus.com/charles-throw-me-a-line https://images.on-this.website/25140_84437172769bcb6a8af321.jpgCharles, Throw me a line. https://www.amyragus.com/catskill-creek-mohican-homelands https://images.on-this.website/25140_54357897069bcb69be61eb.jpgCatskill Creek, Mohican Homelands Mawignack Preserve, Catskill, New York https://www.amyragus.com/snake-road-catskill-ny https://images.on-this.website/25140_192292805769bcb6a5e65b2.jpgSnake Road, Catskill, NY https://www.amyragus.com/the-highland-light https://images.on-this.website/25140_1674225716387b4a8edb34.jpgThe Highland Light (#5) In 1996 the Highland Lighthouse in North Truro was moved 450 feet because of cliff erosion. Originally completed in 1797 it had undergone modifications over the decades and was being rebuilt when Thoreau visited. Thoreau's Highland Light essay was published posthumously in The Atlantic Monthly in 1864. The publication of ten chapters compiled by Thoreau's sister Sophia and close friend Ellery Channing became the book "[i]Cape Cod[/i]" in 1865. Channing was the unnamed companion in Thoreau's Cape essays. I go to Highland Light knowing that Thoreau had taken in this panorama with his body and intellect. I wander this cliff edge and am thinking the view has not changed since he visited, or at least I can say with some certainty it was more the same than different. As I stare outward I allow myself to be pulled back into the present with rhythmic sounds echoing the motion in my chest. Thoreau was very aware of the erosion of the Cape Cod shoreline and spoke about it in detail in relation to this lighthouse. "Even this vast clay bank is fast wearing away." And later in this passage "..and in one place the bank is curiously eaten out in the form of a large semicircular crater." I am prompted to notice in my image a rounded bite that drops off at the edge. Using survey techniques Thoreau methodically calculated cliff heights and speculated on erosion rates. But the emotional impact of this landscape swings the pendulum. Thoreau drops observations in the sand for the reader to collect. He offers deadly riptides, and youths hoping to outrun rising waters only to be killed by a collapsing cliff bank. He shares a report of two dead bodies come ashore from the wrecked St. John, one being headless. But wait ... .... ... For then, a sparkling day will inspire Thoreau to write that he has found "an autumnal landscape of extraordinary brilliancy, a sort of Promised Land on the one hand, and the ocean on the other." Thoreau's mood shifts come as fast as the changing skies and there might not be a hotel lobby to retreat to... In an epiphany reminding me of the famous "Contact!" passage in [i]The Maine Woods[/i] Thoreau describes his experiences with "the Cape under me as if I were riding it bare-backed having found it all outdoors, huge and real Cape Cod!" Then in another passage, this exhilarating landscape makes a drastic left turn. "As we looked off and saw the water growing darker and darker and deeper and deeper the farther we looked till it was awful to consider...." After his initial visit in 1849, Thoreau returned 3 times to ride the bucking waves of this coastline. Thoreau was not afraid to throw himself against the void of this abstract destiny and seemed to relish in the plucking, chewing, and swallowing of all he encountered. This wild place was having a significant impact on him in ways I can only speculate about. https://www.amyragus.com/listen https://images.on-this.website/25140_19651649545310a1521c277.jpgListen https://www.amyragus.com/energyrockpiece-copy https://images.on-this.website/25140_870826172532228ae97f95.jpgEnergy, Newfoundland https://www.amyragus.com/radical-departure-fruitlands https://images.on-this.website/25140_19071725125311e011609f6.jpgRadical departure - Fruitlands https://www.amyragus.com/exhibit-display-random-and-response https://images.on-this.website/25140_1867269978623247f17e03b.jpgMelemele Kahili Ginger Melemele, Hawaii Melemele = Yellow Watercolor, pencil, and gouache on paper 1998- 2000 Flower drawn from life in Hawaii 1998, painting finished later. (better file needed) https://www.amyragus.com/13-pilgrim-walking-auvillar https://images.on-this.website/25140_18744456895314fc75b2035.jpgPilgrim walking, Auvillar https://www.amyragus.com/great-meadows-2-for-website https://images.on-this.website/25140_20726479165369508515292.jpgSource - Great Meadows, Concord https://www.amyragus.com/bash-bish-falls https://images.on-this.website/25140_16616161415b967c505f0d1.jpgBash Bish 2017 Bash Bish is in Washington, MA just over the New York State border. This is a large view that I hope reflects the tradition of the Hudson River painters. I am standing on a rock from a lower vantage point and was happy with the woman sitting closer to the falls. She has placed herself perfectly for the mood and traditional composition. This is what I often do at waterfalls - sit and stare as the sound and movement of the water make their impact. Note: the red sky is an intuitive move on my part and needs some edge tweaking but perhaps it fits with the type of awkward coloring of old tourist photo postcards. https://www.amyragus.com/still https://images.on-this.website/25140_210424061262323f6b4af29.jpgStill fall leaf and autumn view from a balloon. https://www.amyragus.com/morning-englewood-beach https://images.on-this.website/25140_1393748811589df41bb83f0.jpgMorning, Englewood Beach The clarity of the light and space on this morning walk was breathtaking. It seemed I could view into infinity. https://www.amyragus.com/meeting-a-friend-arboretum-march https://images.on-this.website/25140_1555222167607b05065920e.jpgMarch 2020 - Arnold Arboretum - Title: Meeting a friend. March 2020 was when everything changed. Prior to finding this photo location, I was standing photographing a small field of snowdrops in bloom. Others saw me and started to gather around and I was happy to chat. Then more arrived drawn by the small crowd of "snowdrop peepers." I kept backing away and finally left my intentions behind. I had become distrustful of encountering people on my visits. The news was already reporting park closures and the statistics were scary, to say the least. I decided to walk off the pathways. Here I encountered a few friends I could speak with directly. https://www.amyragus.com/greely-falls-detail https://images.on-this.website/25140_4441653695766d5ff517f0.jpgSanctuary, Garwin Falls- detail Detail of previous image. https://www.amyragus.com/40-french-cultural-center-installation https://images.on-this.website/25140_20342009965317227821e56.jpgFrench Cultural Center, Boston https://www.amyragus.com/4-alleyway-auvillar https://images.on-this.website/25140_13239921275314fc79a7041.jpgAlleyway, Auvillar https://www.amyragus.com/source https://images.on-this.website/25140_20897953655310a154d4271.jpgSource https://www.amyragus.com/butterfly-virginia https://images.on-this.website/25140_9551265305790ed0d72593.jpgButterfly, Virginia https://www.amyragus.com/time-may-2017 https://images.on-this.website/25140_44261331960198b722eaa0.jpgTime [b]Image #12 Time - May 2017[/b] The Spring colors and textures are at their peak and I manage to freeze the scene. This point in time is easy to miss if I am not paying attention. Is this real or what I need to see.. Time seems to be moving quickly as I become focused on show deadlines and other appointments away from this place. The frenzy of flowing movement works to quiet a few of the dangerous thoughts I might entertain. I can always rake through shattered glass come November. https://www.amyragus.com/red-tail-nantucket https://images.on-this.website/25140_143370745d729dc604538.jpgRed Tail, Nantucket This is a remake of a collage I shot quite a while ago in film. The yellow piece of the sky was what printed from the scanned negative and I left it there. https://www.amyragus.com/dive-from-cdtiff https://images.on-this.website/25140_8036424335322310839cea.jpgDive https://www.amyragus.com/freight-train https://images.on-this.website/25140_203423063953d28257dc6ac.jpgFreight Train https://www.amyragus.com/photo20463523.html https://images.on-this.website/25140_6395011325310a00b6e20d.jpgPlight of the headless man https://www.amyragus.com/in-the-woods-fruitlands https://images.on-this.website/25140_18830382975311e00fcbbeb.jpgIn the woods - Fruitlands https://www.amyragus.com/leaving-olana-2021 https://images.on-this.website/25140_18417893106216a1289707c.jpgLeaving Olana 2021 As you drive away from Frederic Church's home "Olana" there is a scenic descent. In the foyer of the house a blue iridescent butterfly is displayed in a small frame. A google search initially gave no information on the item -- but then I found a web entry that claims it was collected by Frederick Church in Columbia and that Church used it as a painting reference. Also that it is probably a "Morpho," but the blue color had faded. https://www.amyragus.com/ferry-crossing-catskill-ny https://images.on-this.website/25140_17904798296045421fcc9a3.jpgFerry Crossing, Catskill, NY 2017 This is the site of an old ferry crossing with the Rip Van Winkle Bridge in the distance. Remnants of a dock can be seen further along the shoreline to the left. Recently I recognized what seems to be a very similar viewpoint in a painting by Charles Herbert Moore "Hudson River, Above Catskill" (1865) owned by the Amon Carter Museum. Moore lived right up the hill from where I am standing. https://www.amyragus.com/triptychmiddle https://images.on-this.website/25140_14660167835322278e319b1.jpgTriptych center https://www.amyragus.com/sisters-salem-2010-to-sendpsd https://images.on-this.website/25140_5894577755327058d72f5c.jpgSisters Salem - detail (near the House of the Seven Gables) https://www.amyragus.com/silent-digital-from-neg-ragus https://images.on-this.website/25140_4473731875322310c49b4e.jpgSilent https://www.amyragus.com/harvest-haverill https://images.on-this.website/25140_11822470125310a00773204.jpgHarvest Haverill https://www.amyragus.com/cracking https://images.on-this.website/25140_1598501195311076895422.jpgCracking https://www.amyragus.com/sunflower https://images.on-this.website/25140_195914684753d6c5b1c1feb.jpgSea Star - Asteriidae Also called Sunflower https://www.amyragus.com/sleepy-hollow-natick https://images.on-this.website/25140_13035666315310a01046989.jpgSleepy Hollow (Natick, MA) https://www.amyragus.com/8-deux-soeurs-en-aquitaine https://images.on-this.website/25140_8803359115314fc7d3829b.jpgDeux Soeurs en Aquitaine https://www.amyragus.com/seeing-ghosts-salem https://images.on-this.website/25140_2500087415310a00c44e90.jpgSeeing ghosts, Salem https://www.amyragus.com/at-dudley-pond-wayland https://images.on-this.website/25140_3532713645314ac13f0cda.jpgAt Dudley Pond - Wayland https://www.amyragus.com/the-queen-salem https://images.on-this.website/25140_14420735215310a01656bd9.jpgThe Queen, Salem Walking around in Salem during the high season is energizing and unpredictable. Often a family group will saunter around from street to street. Essex Street is the main thoroughfare to see and be seen. In this case, I was lucky to get this more interesting location. Sometimes I will have a fleeting glimpse of a costume I want to capture -- but too late, they are gone in the crowd. Other times I will follow. https://www.amyragus.com/your-last-ride-salem https://images.on-this.website/25140_41514376953109ff87608e.jpgYour last ride, Salem https://www.amyragus.com/rock-composit-copy https://images.on-this.website/25140_1246522412532228b0d561d.jpgFloating rocks - grouping https://www.amyragus.com/manraylarge https://images.on-this.website/25140_9411129445322278bb7097.jpgFor Man Ray https://www.amyragus.com/nokomis https://images.on-this.website/25140_300513445589e23b1e1a48.jpgNokomis Every evening the sunset on the west coast of Florida provides a new reality. https://www.amyragus.com/the-abandoned-farm https://images.on-this.website/25140_21464079175b969270e1ecb.jpgThe abandoned farm 2017 As I stepped over tangled vines and broken foundations, I was pulled by the silo and the willow tree that mark this abandoned farm. https://www.amyragus.com/frenzied-thoughts-fruitlands https://images.on-this.website/25140_1593858045311e00d2681c.jpgFrenzied thoughts -Fruitlands https://www.amyragus.com/detail-makeup https://images.on-this.website/25140_3028953605baae21fe07ad.jpgDetail - Makeup Sometimes I scare myself.. much later on. https://www.amyragus.com/the-blue-church https://images.on-this.website/25140_925123755696da7528edf.jpgThe Blue Church, Rockport https://www.amyragus.com/elements https://images.on-this.website/25140_18341329305696da1ae6f68.jpgElements Coastal vista in Gloucester. Sun, Sea, Rock, Sky, Wind https://www.amyragus.com/gypsies-staircase-highfield-hall-falmouth https://images.on-this.website/25140_16712407725d7287458c716.jpgGypsie's Staircase - Highfield Hall, Falmouth Magical staircase with old growth rhododendrons. https://www.amyragus.com/detail https://images.on-this.website/25140_6998154395d7290e789b19.jpgDetail https://www.amyragus.com/6-blessing-st-cirq https://images.on-this.website/25140_9359706635314fc7b760d8.jpgBlessing, St. Cirq https://www.amyragus.com/spring-blush-bebe-woods-falmouth https://images.on-this.website/25140_11068089865d7287497bc5f.jpgSpring Blush, Beebe Woods Falmouth https://www.amyragus.com/bebe-woods-falmouth-magic-wand https://images.on-this.website/25140_17106920835d72874b0cb86.jpgBeebe Woods, Falmouth - Magic Wand https://www.amyragus.com/the-sweet-couple-hawthorne-hotel https://images.on-this.website/25140_8049162965310a01901684.jpgThe sweet couple (Hawthorne Hotel), Salem https://www.amyragus.com/shimmer https://images.on-this.website/25140_12953439085310a153f3023.jpgShimmer https://www.amyragus.com/my-little-pupkin https://images.on-this.website/25140_9206880675327058618c7f.jpgPumpkins https://www.amyragus.com/destin https://images.on-this.website/25140_13370740125310a15052b7b.jpgDestin https://www.amyragus.com/1revisiontiff https://images.on-this.website/25140_38284848253223106e548e.jpgFlip https://www.amyragus.com/outer-cape-looking-east-from https://images.on-this.website/25140_5207097246388ce032f197.jpgOuter Cape - Looking East from Marconi Beach https://www.amyragus.com/rock-triptych https://images.on-this.website/25140_946206140532228b19cbac.jpgRock triptych https://www.amyragus.com/haunted-house-weston https://images.on-this.website/25140_7188326865310a00906938.jpgHaunted house, Weston https://www.amyragus.com/outer-cape-following-henry https://images.on-this.website/25140_18311930905d7290e087718.jpgFollowing Henry Thoreau - Outer Cape Cod I spent a few weeks at the Truro Center for the Arts at Castle Hill. The following was written by Bruce Ployer for their website to describe the focus for my artist residency. "Amy Ragus is a student of Henry David Thoreau and came to Truro with an interest in exploring Thoreau's Cape Cod writing while in direct contact with the out Cape shoreline, particularly the writing about the shore as a jumping off point to the wild unknown of the ocean. The shore being a transition point between the land and the ocean. Much of Amy's work reflects the meditation and spirituality associated with the sounds and power of the ocean and where the ocean meets the land." I have been "following" Henry for a while - since the 1990's when I first stumbled upon Walden Woods in Concord, Ma. Only very recently have I become aware that Thoreau visited Nantucket as well as Gloucester. https://www.amyragus.com/cracking-walden-on-sanctuary-cover https://images.on-this.website/25140_10215312105311076753107.jpgCracking, Walden Woods on Sanctuary cover https://www.amyragus.com/welcome-to-the-preserve https://images.on-this.website/25140_11066203215310a01b37924.jpgWelcome to the Preserve https://www.amyragus.com/photo20512329.html https://images.on-this.website/25140_1800351862531b2fb0d4f1c.jpgFruitlands Museum installation https://www.amyragus.com/for-tips-salem https://images.on-this.website/25140_5793498965310a003947ec.jpgFor tips (Salem Human Statue) https://www.amyragus.com/10-la-fleur-de-garonne https://images.on-this.website/25140_19465402815314fc7286237.jpgLa fleur de Garonne https://www.amyragus.com/tower-of-babble https://images.on-this.website/25140_88458061853111f0def4eb.jpgTower of Babble https://www.amyragus.com/promises-in-september-fruitlands https://images.on-this.website/25140_21125977075311e0be85420.jpgPromises in September - Fruitlands https://www.amyragus.com/memory-digital-from-neg-ragus https://images.on-this.website/25140_6928911025322310a583a2.jpgMemory https://www.amyragus.com/view https://images.on-this.website/25140_2624110375696da5f15bf8.jpgView https://www.amyragus.com/into-the-light https://images.on-this.website/25140_11898138545317eb12ab6fb.jpgInto the light https://www.amyragus.com/at-play-siesta-beach-florida https://images.on-this.website/25140_1342140807589e216253f44.jpgSiesta Key Beach, Florida Idyllic Beach. This is a composite, otherwise I could not achieve this very large space. Lots of activity on this beach where you can walk out for many hundreds of yards.... https://www.amyragus.com/halloween-cocktail-party-weston-ma https://images.on-this.website/25140_17560243065310a00674370.jpgHalloween Cocktail Party (Weston, MA) https://www.amyragus.com/11-moulin-a-vent-windmill https://images.on-this.website/25140_11384706875314fc739cf10.jpgMoulin a Vent, Auvillar https://www.amyragus.com/stump-point-manasota-key-for https://images.on-this.website/25140_1666750066531b2c3a270eb.jpgStump Point - Manasota Key, Florida https://www.amyragus.com/druid-salem https://images.on-this.website/25140_10491781405310a00175ed1.jpgDruid, Salem Common https://www.amyragus.com/heron-myakka-river https://images.on-this.website/25140_125475595653d6c5a2986df.jpgHeron, Myakka River Myakka River State Park is a treasure of a place. Not a bad home for this heron. https://www.amyragus.com/fairy-light-beebe-woods-falmouth https://images.on-this.website/25140_5108396635314ac1be18ec.jpgMagic Wand, Beebe Woods - Falmouth https://www.amyragus.com/lucid-walden-woods https://images.on-this.website/25140_11966282085311076f29856.jpgLucid - Walden Woods ( Spring - Walden Pond State Reservation) https://www.amyragus.com/palm-walk-nokomis-florida https://images.on-this.website/25140_2440961858b1bfa1d7e62.jpgPalm walk (Nokomis, Florida) https://www.amyragus.com/12-minter-hal-moulin-a https://images.on-this.website/25140_17061386805314fc74bd5a9.jpgMinter and Hal, Moulin a Nef https://www.amyragus.com/south-point-hawaii https://images.on-this.website/25140_20605438853111f0d0488e.jpgSouth Point - Hawaii https://www.amyragus.com/the-miserable-family-salem-zombie https://images.on-this.website/25140_1311820865327058fc09d3.jpgThe miserable family, Salem - detail (Salem Zombie Parade) https://www.amyragus.com/2-sunday-morning-auvillar https://images.on-this.website/25140_12763869765314fc77940ac.jpgSunday morning, Auvillar https://www.amyragus.com/long-beach-gloucester https://images.on-this.website/25140_6045028065696d94e87fbe.jpgLong Beach Gloucester https://www.amyragus.com/black-cat-salem https://images.on-this.website/25140_49429291853109ffed4077.jpgBlack cat, Salem So, it was a long day of Halloween in the fair town of Salem, MA -- and I am walking back to my car. On the way a black cat cozies up to me on the street, arching her back and leaning in. She leads me down her front walk to her stoop. We spend a bit of time together, and she poses, with pride of place in this historic setting. https://www.amyragus.com/beware-of-the-dog https://images.on-this.website/25140_191105688853109ffcb6aa8.jpgBeware of the dog https://www.amyragus.com/unraked-leaves-wayland https://images.on-this.website/25140_607704255310a01a22ba6.jpgUnraked leaves Wayland https://www.amyragus.com/off-road-nantucket https://images.on-this.website/25140_1462530035d729dc841a2a.jpgOff Road, Nantucket https://www.amyragus.com/dunes-outer-cape-november https://images.on-this.website/25140_16640652185db73a21a088f.jpgDunes Outer Cape November https://www.amyragus.com/sun-dreams-nantucket https://images.on-this.website/25140_8709425165d729dc7047d3.jpgSun Dreams, Nantucket June on Nantucket is full of light and clear air. Shot in 2017 https://www.amyragus.com/flying-series-alter-thumbnail https://images.on-this.website/25140_108122268053223165a93aa.jpgFlying series prices Images are sized for showing as a series. https://www.amyragus.com/beebe-woods-falmouth https://images.on-this.website/25140_18794285775314ac164902c.jpgFairy Light, Beebe Woods - Falmouth https://www.amyragus.com/bebe-woods-punch-bowl https://images.on-this.website/25140_11760190045d72874c4d06e.jpgBeebe Woods Falmouth - Punch Bowl https://www.amyragus.com/far-from-home https://images.on-this.website/25140_69055324589dfc3c2aae1.jpgFar from home This image is not technically shot in Florida but on my flight home. The coral fan however is from Florida and this image expresses my regrets in leaving the Florida coast. https://www.amyragus.com/arriving-at-home https://images.on-this.website/25140_91465051953111f0b3820d.jpgArriving at home https://www.amyragus.com/morpheus-walpole https://images.on-this.website/25140_8562828295314ac206686b.jpgMorpheus https://www.amyragus.com/spring-rain-walden https://images.on-this.website/25140_18055148375812586ee4d74.jpgSpring Rain, Walden https://www.amyragus.com/the-morning-after https://images.on-this.website/25140_17347485805310a014421a0.jpgThe morning after https://www.amyragus.com/fruitlands-museum-installation https://images.on-this.website/25140_17685679415311e00e39b36.jpgFruitlands Museum Art Gallery https://www.amyragus.com/float-digital-from-neg-ragus https://images.on-this.website/25140_110192100553223108ba755.jpgFloat https://www.amyragus.com/moulin-a-vent-auvillar https://images.on-this.website/25140_9227468465317e99dc30bc.jpgMoulin a Vent -Auvillar This drive revealed a view that I shot as we approached. Some info below: https://www.architects.org/the-architecture-of-time-artists/amy-ragus https://www.amyragus.com/voyage https://images.on-this.website/25140_1016419399589df433c8dae.jpgVoyage Another that is over the top (for me) Surrealism --- ! https://www.amyragus.com/max https://images.on-this.website/25140_1811534037623241bf21922.jpgMax https://www.amyragus.com/isadora https://images.on-this.website/25140_17138210275310a151365c9.jpgIsadora https://www.amyragus.com/goldenrod https://images.on-this.website/25140_15464744345c3a14ca31830.jpgGoldenrod 2017 Wandering the roads in the Hudson Valley, I noticed the sharp smell and color of goldenrod. This magic drive seems to lead to nowhere. https://www.amyragus.com/venus https://images.on-this.website/25140_2201663625310a15694e00.jpgVenus https://www.amyragus.com/tracks-walden https://images.on-this.website/25140_189215853953110777af4a0.jpgTracks, Walden Pond https://www.amyragus.com/barretts-detail https://images.on-this.website/25140_1631991495636d73e647d37.jpgBarretts (detail) https://www.amyragus.com/sisters-salem https://images.on-this.website/25140_5200378845310a00e65010.jpgSisters Salem (near The House of the Seven Gables) https://www.amyragus.com/photo39541349.html https://images.on-this.website/25140_16172283226011997b0d273.jpg https://www.amyragus.com/myakka-palms https://images.on-this.website/25140_1442843720589dfc389bf13.jpgMyakka Palms https://www.amyragus.com/7-la-petanque https://images.on-this.website/25140_17194256805314fc7c57b8d.jpgLa Petanque et l'eglise, Clermont-Soubiran https://www.amyragus.com/spiderman-ipswich https://images.on-this.website/25140_415749165310a011566e7.jpgSpiderman (Ipswich, MA) https://www.amyragus.com/flower-in-hawaii https://images.on-this.website/25140_7486632676232355448b73.jpgTorch Lily Found in Hawaii -Kniphofia or Torch Lily Drawn from life, .oil on board https://www.amyragus.com/pond-in-november https://images.on-this.website/25140_1600474071531107640ba71.jpgPond in November (Walden Pond State Reservation) https://www.amyragus.com/harvest-tower-hill https://images.on-this.website/25140_21261562705d8d287650b28.jpgHarvest - Tower Hill https://www.amyragus.com/photo45174707.html https://images.on-this.website/25140_84163319362323b679544d.jpgIn the night https://www.amyragus.com/in-the-garden-walpole https://images.on-this.website/25140_4658681395314ac1ec6f30.jpgIn the garden https://www.amyragus.com/lucky-walpole-ma https://images.on-this.website/25140_5892701255d8d287c91264.jpgLucky - Walpole, MA https://www.amyragus.com/night-hosta-and-fire https://images.on-this.website/25140_521530359623236994a19a.jpgNight Hosta and Fire https://www.amyragus.com/sanctuary-spanish-point https://images.on-this.website/25140_1881981332589e8419e3656.jpgSanctuary, Spanish Point Step off the path and you will find a world within worlds... https://www.amyragus.com/sentinel-fruitlands https://images.on-this.website/25140_8727855375311e012d5e5a.jpgSentinel - Fruitlands https://www.amyragus.com/the-pond-in-october-walden https://images.on-this.website/25140_1755103225669978c0e2b9d.jpgThe Pond in October, Walden https://www.amyragus.com/afternoon-olana-2021 https://images.on-this.website/25140_517081192628cfacc572a9.jpgThe Dreamer (Afternoon Olana 2021) 2022 https://www.amyragus.com/15-thoreau-farm-trust-show https://images.on-this.website/25140_1965778441531b2faee7377.jpgThoreau Farm Trust exhibit I was lucky enough to exhibit some of my Walden images at the birthplace of Henry David Thoreau. For a short period my work was in Henry's "birth room." https://www.amyragus.com/fire-in-winter-walden-woods https://images.on-this.website/25140_15232199845311076a48c27.jpgFire in Winter https://www.amyragus.com/prize-walden-pond-may https://images.on-this.website/25140_9467541586486263aa2bda.jpgPrize (Walden Pond, May) https://www.amyragus.com/nantucket-southern-point https://images.on-this.website/25140_1793033145d729dc169de2.jpgNantucket - Southern Point https://www.amyragus.com/wrong-turn-walpole https://images.on-this.website/25140_16435711615310a01e41d9d.jpgWrong Turn Walpole https://www.amyragus.com/prize-walden-pond-may-detail https://images.on-this.website/25140_9519015596486262ec5f0f.jpgPrize (Walden Pond, May) Detail https://www.amyragus.com/luna-moth-at-coast-newfoundland https://images.on-this.website/25140_6169618366232412a95bd4.jpgLuna moth at coast - Newfoundland https://www.amyragus.com/3-amy-ragus-shelter-walden https://images.on-this.website/25140_213666423653110765de138.jpgShelter, Walden Pond https://www.amyragus.com/corn-maze-marini-farm-ipswich https://images.on-this.website/25140_13644405105310a000a42f3.jpgCorn Maze Marini Farm Ipswich https://www.amyragus.com/untitled-st-augustine-bea-copy https://images.on-this.website/25140_181934303653111f0edacb7.jpgUntitled - St. Augustine Beach, Fl https://www.amyragus.com/nantucket-surfside-southern-point https://images.on-this.website/25140_12510350285d729dc338549.jpgNantucket Surfside (Southern Point) https://www.amyragus.com/dusk-2020-arboretum-dec-2020 https://images.on-this.website/25140_174617294060428bb446248.jpgJanuary 2020 -Arnold Arboretum - Title: Deeper Dusk Dogs and their walkers. https://www.amyragus.com/2-spirit-newfoundlad https://images.on-this.website/25140_56938180153222789b9a3f.jpgSpirit, Newfoundlad https://www.amyragus.com/5-encounter-lespalier https://images.on-this.website/25140_14962804445314fc7a91fca.jpgEncounter, L'espalier https://www.amyragus.com/sunset-hudson-river https://images.on-this.website/25140_1474631995c7eebdbd29ca.jpgSunset, Hudson River 2017 The sunsets along the Hudson can be spectacular. As I was driving south the glow appeared. https://www.amyragus.com/mirage-dog-town https://images.on-this.website/25140_9900855015696da4926b68.jpgMirage, Dogtown (Gloucester, MA) Walking on the trails through Dogown, I glimpsed a boulder camouflaged by vines and undergrowth. https://www.amyragus.com/39-french-cultural-center-installation https://images.on-this.website/25140_56018349153172276e4210.jpgFrench Cultural Center, Boston https://www.amyragus.com/gee-baker-farm-road-walden https://images.on-this.website/25140_60587409053111ffaacf9f.jpgGee - Baker Farm Road (Walden) https://www.amyragus.com/sleepy-holler-cemetary-norfolk https://images.on-this.website/25140_11603000105310a00f38695.jpgSleepy holler cemetary, Norfolk https://www.amyragus.com/blood-and-fire-salem https://images.on-this.website/25140_123652342853109fffa9b7d.jpgBlood and fire, Salem https://www.amyragus.com/thermal https://images.on-this.website/25140_6687274262323faeb3188.jpgThermal https://www.amyragus.com/18-at-thoreau-farm-trust https://images.on-this.website/25140_1491489887531b2faff0a8d.jpgThoreau farm trust exhibit I was lucky enough to exhibit some of my Walden images at the birthplace of Henry David Thoreau. For a short period my work was in Henry's "birth room." https://www.amyragus.com/sunset-englewood-florida https://images.on-this.website/25140_102390151753d6c5c279f5e.jpgSunset, Englewood, Florida https://www.amyragus.com/french-show-installation https://images.on-this.website/25140_13200428415317227ca75d6.jpgFrench Cultural Center, Boston https://www.amyragus.com/in-love-with-you-walden https://images.on-this.website/25140_8524885695311076d911f6.jpgIn love with you - Walden Pond (Summer) https://www.amyragus.com/standing-on-principle-fruitlands https://images.on-this.website/25140_1042916975311e01462b9f.jpgStanding on Principle - Fruitlands https://www.amyragus.com/mood-lift https://images.on-this.website/25140_886132767607b0c9eae240.jpgApril 2020 - Arnold Arboretum -Title: Sweeter Thoughts On this day many came to experience a short miracle of mood shift. As I lingered and watched I noticed rendezvous meetings in the park. By this time most visitors were "social distancing" -- a term of behavior that had become a dreaded necessity. The climate produced by these precautions is not carefree by definition, but now I could sense visitors smiling under their masks, or thought I could. ... I know I was smiling. https://www.amyragus.com/glen-ellis-falls-nh https://images.on-this.website/25140_8472050575766d38eae2e3.jpgGlen Ellis Falls, NH Glenn Ellis in Jackson NH is a classic falls with easy trail access. It was raining while I was there which made walking on the rocks dicey. https://www.amyragus.com/early-to-albuquerque-copy https://images.on-this.website/25140_118157789053111ff85f077.jpgEarly to Albuquerque https://www.amyragus.com/daily-walk-at-duck-harbor https://images.on-this.website/25140_40546990363adb7cecbbed.jpgDaily Walk at Duck Harbor Beach. Wellfleet https://www.amyragus.com/witch-walking-salem https://images.on-this.website/25140_5800298605310a01d28695.jpgWitch walking Salem https://www.amyragus.com/3-the-rock-and-sky https://images.on-this.website/25140_4989802255322278ac198d.jpgThe rock and sky, Newfoundland https://www.amyragus.com/moth https://images.on-this.website/25140_15524712725766d79ab721b.jpgMoth This image was my first waterfall shoot (film) in 1996, near Johnson, Vt. During my several week stay in the area I encountered several spectacular moths. The flying form in this image somehow reflects those moth encounters. https://www.amyragus.com/fog-walden-pond https://images.on-this.website/25140_1299900705311076bea2f5.jpgFog - Walden Pond (Fall foliage) https://www.amyragus.com/the-longer-view-1 https://images.on-this.website/25140_7619443455a1f4036a9e60.jpgThe Longer View A [b]Image #6 “The Longer View - January 2017”[/b] In January we finally have our first strong snow and I go out for a walk. I am trying to see the longer view of my situation. The commuter train cuts like a rifle shot into my thoughts. https://www.amyragus.com/night-at-the-beach https://images.on-this.website/25140_124976178262323e5fe0dbd.jpgRipening at night pencil, gouache on paper https://www.amyragus.com/yosemite-falls https://images.on-this.website/25140_15353466685766d02d56c5c.jpgYosemite Falls Shot with film at Yosemite. The vantage point with the reflection of the falls is unusual. Being artist in residence at Yosemite National Park was daunting. How does one improve upon the masters? Shot in 1998 I only recently (2015) completed this image by scanning the negatives. https://www.amyragus.com/haunted-hayride-walpole https://images.on-this.website/25140_14153947085310a0083e8b7.jpgHaunted hayride, Walpole https://www.amyragus.com/great-meadows-for-website https://images.on-this.website/25140_42709048536950872c539.jpgSpring - Great Meadows, Concord https://www.amyragus.com/snow-storm-adams-farm-walpole https://images.on-this.website/25140_8539846765314ac221ebdf.jpgSnow storm https://www.amyragus.com/bella-salem https://images.on-this.website/25140_163917016553109ffa602c5.jpgBella, Salem I encountered this older woman on the streets of Salem. Convinced that she was a witch, I asked permission to photograph her. She refused, so I grabbed a shot as she turned away from me. Pink seemed to be de rigueur that year in Salem... https://www.amyragus.com/siblings-wilson-farms-lexington https://images.on-this.website/25140_244790675310a00d4dae5.jpgSiblings (Wilson Farms - Lexington, MA) https://www.amyragus.com/secrets-walden https://images.on-this.website/25140_27109681531107746e767.jpgSecrets, Walden Pond (Fall Foliage Walden) https://www.amyragus.com/august-2020-arnold-arboretum-title https://images.on-this.website/25140_137185858604e10a73b340.jpgAugust 2020 - Arnold Arboretum - Title: Eden By August I had decided I would no longer include figures in my images, that I needed to go back to nature on its own. I did not want to document the pandemic. I wanted to forget the pandemic. If there were to be more sprites I needed to find tiny ones deep in the forest. But the Arboretum was a park and there were people. And there should be. But I made an effort to leave the paths and carefully move through the underbrush. I was looking for Eden if only in my mind. And so on my visits I put blinders on and returned to my initial vision of the Arboretum as a tree museum with living specimens. Each had a personality and an individual footprint. Each was documented, cared for, and preserved for us to discover. Lack of visitor distancing was a problem and the Arboretum staff didn't have personnel to enforce it. One minute I would be walking gazing at the plantings when all of a sudden a group of runners would weave around me at very close proximity all breathing strongly with mouths wide open. Yikes. There were bicycle riders, runners, and families who refused to wear masks or distance themselves and I witnessed yelling and threatening behaviors between visitors. The Arboretum Director was determined to stay open. I became focused on a personal effort to encourage safety by writing emails and making phone calls, contacting the press and city officials. I used a classic triangulation approach with the City of Boston that an old rabble-rouser friend always talked to me about in his strategies. Maybe I made some impact, and this surprised me as I had never before participated in social action. Later that Summer I applied the same methods in my home town and I was successful, particularly because it was a smaller pond. https://www.amyragus.com/red-yellow-green-walpole-ma https://images.on-this.website/25140_665177745d8d287a0cd33.jpgRed, Yellow, Green - Walpole, MA Shot from a window at my house in Walpole Ma. https://www.amyragus.com/flying-saucer-seen-in-wayland https://images.on-this.website/25140_6769965115310a0029e945.jpgVisitors to a Wayland Address https://www.amyragus.com/birds-and-buds-thayer-street https://images.on-this.website/25140_16998124353109ffdc25de.jpgBirds and Buds (Thayer Street, Boston) https://www.amyragus.com/quarry-rockport https://images.on-this.website/25140_9154822475696d97816b6f.jpgQuarry, Rockport Sometimes I am intimidated or even frightened by Cape Ann's rocky coastline and powerful vistas. I can sense the hard tonnage of granite monoliths pressing down on my chest. The granite industry is glimpsed at here. Tons of cut rock are lowered down to the beach where they were loaded on vessels and floated to market. https://www.amyragus.com/the-miserable-family-salem https://images.on-this.website/25140_12471541635310a01344cf9.jpgThe miserable family, Salem (Salem Zombie Parade) I found this lovely family at the Zombie Parade in Salem. Grandma on the left is pointing for me -- indicating that "These are mine." They did not break their demeanor for the entire time I was observing them. Was it an act? https://www.amyragus.com/still-standing https://images.on-this.website/25140_1340498792531107763a9ef.jpgStill Standing (Walden Woods Winter) https://www.amyragus.com/moth-digital-from-neg-ragus https://images.on-this.website/25140_21123650005322310b55f37.jpgMoth https://www.amyragus.com/beauty https://images.on-this.website/25140_16584713385a1edae5d8893.jpgBeauty [b]Image #10 Beauty - March 2017[/b] It is March and there is still snow. Soon the doctors will determine if I can drive again and I will go out in the world and resume normal activities. And, if not... .. My thoughts on my life are conflicted - a racing battle of conjecture. As I move between the sum and the parts my mind softens. I suppose there is no other place I need to go. https://www.amyragus.com/argonaut https://images.on-this.website/25140_14462199405310a14f620f7.jpgArgonaut https://www.amyragus.com/kaaterskill-falls https://images.on-this.website/25140_6999366075c37d6420e722.jpgKaaterskill 2017 This is a view of Kaaterskill Falls from the upper observation deck. The constant flow of visitors was distracting and I wanted to fly out over the scene. I lingered and paced, pushing my desire over the railing as far as I could. https://www.amyragus.com/highfield-hall-portals-and-passages https://images.on-this.website/25140_15901783675d72874d62d71.jpgHighfield Hall - Portals and Passages Exhibit My image Gypsie's Staircase was included in Highfield Hall's Portals and Passages exhibit which focused on site specific sculpture installations. My work was also seen in a one -person show in the galleries. https://www.amyragus.com/december-2020-arnold-arboretum-title https://images.on-this.website/25140_1479842048606223c482988.jpgDecember 2019 - Arnold Arboretum - Title: White Lines, No Words https://www.amyragus.com/pulse https://images.on-this.website/25140_11692139775a107ab45c952.jpgLucky [b]Image #2 - “Lucky”[/b][/b][u][/u] [b]Mid Oct. 2016[/b] This was my first photo shoot after my hospital release. I checked myself out of the hospital earlier than recommended. I was elated to be home and safe but was physically weak and in considerable pain. During my hospital stay, I was repeatedly told how fortunate I was to have survived. Emotionally I could only handle neutral subjects - simple thoughts were best. Bright color was right in front of me. I sat on my deck and blankly stared. 'How easy to make something beautiful from what is already so beautiful" I think. I collect the leaves with my camera and then later on my computer. I follow my usual procedures to compose the image. I remove jarring bits and smooth it out for a pleasing result. "I am lucky." https://www.amyragus.com/wyman-meadow-walden https://images.on-this.website/25140_5696577825311077994dc2.jpgWyman Meadow, Walden https://www.amyragus.com/bird-watch-tower-hill https://images.on-this.website/25140_11721101435314ac18492dd.jpgBird Watch - Tower Hill https://www.amyragus.com/in-the-night https://images.on-this.website/25140_1244112552589df42b7f6dc.jpgIn the Night https://www.amyragus.com/the-rock-newfoundland-from-orig https://images.on-this.website/25140_139761925532228b4752ef.jpgThe Rock, Newfoundland https://www.amyragus.com/charlies-home-walpole https://images.on-this.website/25140_8146768915314ac1a151f3.jpgCharlie at home https://www.amyragus.com/at-barretts-haunted-mansion-abington https://images.on-this.website/25140_2192738353109ff94d6c9.jpgAt Barretts Haunted Mansion (Abington, MA) https://www.amyragus.com/vortex-february-2017 https://images.on-this.website/25140_6339340585a1edd2cd2032.jpgVortex Image #8 [b]Vortex - February 2017[/b] I am going to get the mail on a snowy day and as always I am wondering how long it will take to get plowed out. Mostly it is strangers who have asked if I saw "the tunnel" when I was technically - gone from this earth. But who can say what really happened. And does it [i]really[/i] matter? My sense of what is "real" has certainly taken a hit, and if I stray off the path I might tumble out of sight. So for now I will navigate without a car and go up and down my private tunnel... on foot. https://www.amyragus.com/the-ritual-amherst https://images.on-this.website/25140_17893257205310a017624b4.jpgThe ritual, Amherst https://www.amyragus.com/best-of-show-scarecrow-contest https://images.on-this.website/25140_13924755253109ffb8e084.jpgBest of Show (scarecrow contest - Shrewsbury, MA) https://www.amyragus.com/9-marriage-la-garonne-auvillar https://images.on-this.website/25140_11628420755314fc7e5af53.jpgMarriage - La Garonne, Auvillar https://www.amyragus.com/the-garden-sanibel-island https://images.on-this.website/25140_201283825558b1bed81aedb.jpgThe Garden (Sanibel Island) At its very best there are quiet places in Florida that tap into a (the) primal energy. I can feel the forces of life emerging in the quiet movement of the water. Sun, wind, sand, mystery. https://www.amyragus.com/may-arnold-arboretum-2020 https://images.on-this.website/25140_178117253603158c27dcf1.jpgMay 2020 - Arnold Arboretum -Title: Spring has never failed me yet When I studied art in my youth, I was told that these colors "clash." And who cares if they do. https://www.amyragus.com/welcome-salem https://images.on-this.website/25140_12856355465310a01c27b07.jpgWelcome (Salem) https://www.amyragus.com/triptychleft https://images.on-this.website/25140_13528051575322278d87e11.jpgTriptych left https://www.amyragus.com/14-time-plieux https://images.on-this.website/25140_17408581795314fc76ad306.jpgTime, Plieux https://www.amyragus.com/salem-intersection-copy https://images.on-this.website/25140_22198761453270ab1a657e.jpgSeeing Ghosts, Salem - detail I shot this piece quickly while at a stop light in Salem. Later when I put the collage together I noticed a dog/creature outside the fence to the right of the woman walking her dog. It does not appear that the woman is aware of this "apparition" on her right, but the woman's dog is moving away. hmmm? am I seeing things? Note: I did not edit this digital capture. https://www.amyragus.com/haines-falls https://images.on-this.website/25140_10253372645b96825ed0f45.jpgHaines Falls 2017 This falls is on private land and I was told I would be arrested. Well, it was after high season and the guards were taking a break. There are no barriers and I suppose people could slip to their deaths fairly easily. After hours of scrambling around this was my best and only view of the actual water "fall." I was shooting into the sun and watching my back. I can only hint at the sheer drop. https://www.amyragus.com/french-cultural-center-installation-2 https://images.on-this.website/25140_5459969215317227a42a6d.jpgFrench Cultural Center, Boston https://www.amyragus.com/photo42230303.html https://images.on-this.website/25140_1409597209607af717f063c.jpgOctober 2019 - Arnold Arboretum - Title: Tree Play (close up) I show a detail because these images include a wide sweep of extended space. I shoot perhaps 50+ photo frames from one location. The images are merged in Photoshop and the prints I originally planned would have been between 30 and 40 inches. After taking in the larger space, the viewer could walk up closer to see details. Here visitors are at play with this magnificent tree. https://www.amyragus.com/pleasure-walden-woods https://images.on-this.website/25140_71165510153110770df650.jpgPleasure, Walden Woods https://www.amyragus.com/near-polpis-road-spring-nantucket https://images.on-this.website/25140_2937383025d729dc9aed7f.jpgNear Polpis road, Spring - Nantucket This walking or bike path parallels Polpis Road. I spied the flowering pink from the road and eventually found a way to this particular location. https://www.amyragus.com/shelter https://images.on-this.website/25140_14032044755696d9fe34680.jpgShelter I am out on the rock ledge overlooking the ocean in Rockport. It is starting to rain and I see a huge bolder that seems large enough for some shelter. As I crouch below the overhang I spy a sailboat moving south towards the dark cloud formation that is moving north. The storm passed quickly without incident. https://www.amyragus.com/greely-falls-nh https://images.on-this.website/25140_16438839185766d57cdb01a.jpgSanctuary, Garwin Falls, NH Shot with film in 2001 and remade 2016 by scanning the negatives. This is a huge space. The site is on private property near Peterborough and allows for nude bathing. When I sent a copy to the person in the image (figure right lower area of falls), he was disappointed that his presence was so small. I disagree. His presence makes the image. https://www.amyragus.com/ar-12-florida-jungle-2013 https://images.on-this.website/25140_57203870153188b3dbf2c7.jpgOld Growth Merritt Island National Wildlife Refuge, Florida. https://www.amyragus.com/the-longer-view https://images.on-this.website/25140_6524718365a1f404fbe3f0.jpgThe Longer View - B [b]Image #7 “The Longer View” - January 2017[/b] A moment later, the train has passed and silence is restored. it is just a beautiful walk. I notice the soft colors and congratulate myself on my distance. https://www.amyragus.com/softly-scherer-state-park https://images.on-this.website/25140_881758511589df4a2b9fe0.jpgSoftly, Oscar Scherer State Park When a palm frond falls it sometimes seems to float down like a feather. https://www.amyragus.com/abandoned-farm-nantucket https://images.on-this.website/25140_10000738065d729dc47fc8f.jpgAbandoned Farm, Nantucket I noticed an overgrown driveway and turned in. This property was "resting." Abandoned and neglected bird houses and plantings quietly housing wildlife. In the distance a recent mega mansion. Can these really be called "homes?" I prefer this site and linger for a while with the residents. https://www.amyragus.com/moss-glen-falls-vermont https://images.on-this.website/25140_844913125766d104c4dcc.jpgMoss Glen Falls, Vermont Moss Glen is a classic falls, particularly when viewed in October. This was my first serious photo shoot with a digital camera and I am starting to make some areas continuous through Photoshop merging. I left the lower foreground with obvious overlaps to imply the subterranean strata and the passageway of the water as it channels through the rocky landscape. https://www.amyragus.com/assessing-the-damage-walpole-ma https://images.on-this.website/25140_10065052995d8d287863291.jpgAssessing the damage - Walpole Ma part of my series shot at my home in Walpole following a dramatic accident. https://www.amyragus.com/the-scream https://images.on-this.website/25140_17680289025310a01842af0.jpgThe Scream https://www.amyragus.com/rocktriptych-outside-3copy-copy https://images.on-this.website/25140_2074366884532228b32aca2.jpgTriptych right https://www.amyragus.com/1-in-my-memory-auvillar https://images.on-this.website/25140_7819611925314fc711d1a3.jpgIn my Memory, Auvillar Collection Virginia Center for the Arts, Auvillar, France https://www.amyragus.com/the-neighbor https://images.on-this.website/25140_11760406785310a01556f50.jpgThe Neighbor I pulled over for a display located on the lawn to the left of the front door.. A mother and son came out to question me. I gave them my song and dance and asked permission. A few moments later I was checking my settings and then looked up. https://www.amyragus.com/the-323 https://images.on-this.website/25140_3564241275a107bc35bc61.jpgThe 3:23 [b]Image #3 “The Three Twenty-Three”- [b]Late October 2016[/b] [/b] I live along the railroad and have a thin strip of land at its edge. By late October I feel strong enough to walk along the tracks for a few dozen yards looking for some lingering color. The 3:23 to Walpole Center comes by. I am the red tree watching it pass. https://www.amyragus.com/arnold-arboretum-october-2019 https://images.on-this.website/25140_2142285975607b09825dfb9.jpgOctober 2019 - Arnold Arboretum Boston - Title: Enchanted Garden Same trees, different viewpoint. As I wandered the area I noticed that many visitors were drawn to this point by the low hanging branches of color. This is truly an enchanted garden. https://www.amyragus.com/photo42230304.html https://images.on-this.website/25140_1503127530607af7a604def.jpgOctober 2019 - Arnold Arboretum - Title: Enchanted Garden (detail) https://www.amyragus.com/arnold-arboretum-november-2019 https://images.on-this.website/25140_1297298189604e17abe47b9.jpgNovember 2019 - Arnold Arboretum - Title: Mind and Flight For me, November heralds the return to a quiet life. https://www.amyragus.com/august-2020-title-private-dance https://images.on-this.website/25140_806119527603d6f0343b51.jpgAugust 2020 - Title: Private Dance https://www.amyragus.com/following-henry-provincetown-ma https://images.on-this.website/25140_2676719015d8d2872aa109.jpgFollowing Henry - Provincetown, MA Ventured to the Outer Cape in November 2018 to experience what Thoreau wrote about in his book Cape Cod. More on images from Truro in my Thoreau/Walden/Cape Gallery. https://www.amyragus.com/ripe-tower-hill-botanical-gardens https://images.on-this.website/25140_8266531215d8d2874e3980.jpgRipe - Tower Hill Botanical Gardens https://www.amyragus.com/the-hidden-forest-nantucket https://images.on-this.website/25140_1699167085e515a60cd216.jpgThe Hidden Forest, Nantucket I photographed the Hidden forest in 1994 and completed large hand-cut collages in 1995-8. I am re-creating some of these images digitally although it is a daunting task. This image I shot in 2015 and completed in 2019. Immediately the mysterious forces of this place appeared to me although, on a cursory walk along the trail, they might not be apparent. https://www.amyragus.com/night-fishing-for-sharks https://images.on-this.website/25140_807473144589e240196db5.jpgNight Fishing One evening I was on the beach at sunset and saw a family setting up for night fishing. Here, two parents watch as their son kayaks out to set the bait - for sharks. I came back later to watch them haul in a large shark, weigh it, and then release it. https://www.amyragus.com/promises-walden https://images.on-this.website/25140_2036990898531107728780c.jpgPromises - Walden https://www.amyragus.com/get-your-makeup-done-salem https://images.on-this.website/25140_11229518345310a0059f5c5.jpgGet your makeup done, Salem https://www.amyragus.com/receive https://images.on-this.website/25140_1161840525589df4233db0c.jpgReceive This piece is an exploratory attempt to understand the nature of receiving from the unknown. We look up to the sky and ask to be calmed, to be forgiven, to be directed, to be taken. The answers are there but can we hear them, can we follow them?