Art and Soul

[Gallery window, Newbury St, Boston; May 16, 2010]

In ancient Greek the word for butterfly is "Psyche," which translated means "soul." [WikiAnswers]

Comments

[marja-leena]

Amazing photo! I see two figures reflected in it and keep looking at how this is possible. And I didn't know that 'Psyche'/butterfly means 'soul'!

[maria]

Great photo, with the double reflections, from window and the picture glass (I assume), as if these selves were emerging from the butterfly.

[Relatively Retiring]

Oh, that's CLEVER!

[Jean]

Wow, Leslee - clever and beautiful!!

[Leslee]

Thanks, all. You know, when I snapped the photo I couldn't really see where my reflection was among all the busyness of the art and other reflections. Plus I had the camera away from my eye. So I was surprised when I saw how it turned out!

[Lorianne]

Excellent! I know how difficult these reflective shots are to compose, and you nailed this one. I notice you have the same non-smiling expression I always have in my reflective shots: it takes too much concentration to compose the shot and remember to smile.

[Leslee]

Thanks! Seriously, I couldn't even see my face when I took the shot and had no idea it was in the center of the butterfly until I looked at it (with my reading glasses on) back in the apartment.

[Jean]

Hmm. I think maybe sometimes these seemingly serendipitous shots are only partly that. There are wonderful chances, but perhaps they only happen when you're really present as you take the picture, when some kind of 'third eye' can see what you're taking, even if the other two can't.

[Leslee]

Jean: You may be right. Coincidentally, my last tweet last week was in response to seeing a swallowtail in the park near work and identifying with it - my desire to free myself from the drudgery of my job: "When her leaf-litter guise tires, she rises, vamps her tiger-striped wings, flutters off."