|
One of my
passions is exploring the high country
in Colorado where we recently purchased
a home just north of Durango. I can,
literally, get lost for hours going down
trails or roads just trying to find a
vantage point where "it all comes
together." I liken my desire for
the perfect spot to our desire to hear
good music. When a band or orchestra is
"together" and balanced, where the
harmonies are perfect and the music is
soothing or inspirational, it stirs the
soul and moves you inwardly bringing
emotional release - even a sense of
worship and awe. As you know in the
music world, a moment like that is rare,
and when it happens, you want to soak it
up and take it in. We want the sound to
wash over us and make us feel more
alive. In visual art, much like
music, I strive to pull everything
together in a balanced yet dramatic,
rhythmic but steady, soft here then
bold there manner - then do all this
within a setting that I wish I would
stumble on in real life. However, it
rarely does all come together in the
chaos of the natural world. While
there is order and planning in the
living things themselves, nature throws
storms, floods, earthquakes, avalanches,
ice ages, and so on at the landscape
creating a sense of disorder and chaos.
Most of the time, it looks like a
junior high garage band sounds – messy!
Enter the creative and orderly
thoughts of a human being, especially
the artistic mind and like a landscape
designer, one can begin to simplify,
order, and arrange things in a more
pleasing manner that soothes the
soul. Creating these make believe
scenes is challenging, however, because
I don't want it to look like a park, or
like someone "did it." I want the scene
to still feel natural and wild. So, I
pulled together over 20 photographs for
this painting and wrote a song. I
hope you feel the swell of the melody as
you approach this rushing stream. It is
the crescendo of the song in the hills
where the music speaks powerfully to
your inner you. This piece -
“Mountain Melody” - was arranged and
“performed” just for you.
~ Mark Keathley |
