January 30, 2013

Ground Beneath My Feet 1


How often do we ever observe the ground that we walk upon? What began as a whimsical, accidentally taken image of me walking sparked off a curious meditation, the subject being: the ground that we walk and stand upon. 

The ground beneath our feet literally grounds us, rooting and connecting us to our surroundings. And yet, while walking through places, we see, register, and pause upon all that surrounds us: the houses, the color of the sky, the people whom we sidestep as they hurtle past us, and the cars clustered in a gossipy huddle on the sides of the roads. But how often do we ever think to look down and see what it is that we are walking upon? We assume for granted the solidity and mundanity of that we step foot on: but it is always so?

A few years ago, while walking road-side in Jodhpur, I remember encountering a host of variegated objects: torn, iridiscent sari scraps, broken glass bangles, notebooks half filled, and a almost-new looking shoe (where was its  sole companion?) The road-side was a stream of flowing traffic in itself, a traffic of stories. And it made me ponder that the floors, surfaces, textures, and the objects on the ground are telling so much...if we are willing to look and listen. 

So hereby begins a new feature of mine: Ground Beneath My Feet, where I will be presenting the different examples of grounds that I have walked upon (and to add a bit of visual interest, my shoes!). Kickstarting this idea is this image below:

Radcliffe Square, Oxford (2009)

I have always found cobbled surfaces fascinating: they immediately hearken back to a medieval era, the cobbled landscape conjuring up images of stylised boots navigating a studded floor, horses' hooves rattling away on the stones. How mundane it is to encounter the flatness of tarmac afterwards!


If you would like to contribute to this feature, go ahead and do so...email me at iamjustavisualperson@gmail.com with your images:)


January 27, 2013

Back after a hiatus...


Readers, I am still very much here...last year, this time round, I had idly mused as to what 2012 would yield for me; as it happened, it proved to be eventful in many ways, including getting married and moving from Oman to United States.

Well, here we are in 2013 and even though it's a tad late, here's wishing you a very happy new year!

This is the longest I have gone without blogging since I began almost two years ago and I have missed it, indeed...however, I am now back  and have plenty to blog about - what with a new country, new year, new seasons, sights and sounds...there is much waiting to present over here!

To start off, I am looking forward to the opportunity to travel and discover more of United States; my most recent and first exploration happened in northern California, where we drove down the Pacific Coastal Highway while visiting San Francisco and LA along the way.

While the stunning coastline arguably provided post-card photography options aplenty, I also thought to include more random images that I happened to take; quite often, these are the images that make you more vividly and specifically remember a place and become the stuff of your memories. 

Jagged Rocks:
The tumultuous sea; the solid, stolid rocks

Fifty Shades of Blue:
Jade, azure, cobalt, cerulean...you can stand for hours and contemplate the universe of blue


Ghost Tree at 17 Mile Drive:
I loved how the natural elements had sculpted the tree trunk into this sinuous minimalism - and yet, its dynamic; what would it look like the next time I visited it?


The Lone Cypress


Starting Line:
Sometimes, it's all about the timing