Part three Politics & FEAR

 

FEAR

of Fire, an unberable FLASH

FEAR

of Being, Kidnapped, Caged, Tortured

 Dismemberment

FEAR

  of Falling, Descending, Disease, Death 

FEAR

of Attack, Chaos, Horror, Evil  

FEAR

of Abuse, Bombs, Burials, Explosions

FEAR

 of Man-Destruction, Climate-Destruction

FEAR

of Lies, unbearable Meanness, Heartlessness

FEAR

of Insanity, Darkness, unbearable Light

FEAR

of Being Lost, Alone, Abandoned, Abducted

FEAR  

of Feelings, of Anger, of Hatred

   Homage Escher & Mannerism  P#1A                   Inkjet print, straight photograph               12x12"   

                                        "Upside-down stairs"                                       

  (a straight photograph turned upside down)

This straight photograph, from my early

1994-2000 miniature gelatin print Studies Project,

 served as the Source image for the symmetrical variation below #1B.  Most of

the black and white images you will see in this project have come from the 1994-2000 project.

It was the image above (#1A) which initiated the idea for this entire project, in mid-December, 2025 shortly after 

 I had watched--again--the excellent film: MC Escher - Journey to Infinity  which I had purchased on

Amazon.com after seeing it the first time in October, 2023.    

  The image above (#1A) and the image below (#1B) were published in early December, 20205 in my Humor

   12x12" Inkjet Print blog project simply because they reminded me of MC Escher's black and white prints.

  Though the images are not so humorous, they did bring a smile upon my face when I studied them 

    closely.  I remain charmed by the perceptual surprise they both quietly present--the way they 

  appear to be simultaneously "up right" and "upside down."  I find myself going up & 

   down & all around in circles in the symmetrical image.  These two images have 

                    sparked all the new photographs you will seeing in this project.                 

Homage Escher & Mannerism  N#1C               Symmetrical Photograph   Variation 2       15x15"

 "Circular Upside-down Staircase . . .   

                                         Infinitely ascending and descending"                                               

ThisImage is N#1B (above) rotated 90 degrees manifesting a very different space.   

Homage Escher & Mannerism  N# EX1               Symmetrical Photograph                      18x18"

"The Fall"

         Homage Escher & Mannerism     N#17                 Symmetrical Photograph                   21x21"          

                                           "A Man Falling off a ladder into the starry sky"                                       

         

               Homage Escher & Mannerism      N#18              Symmetrical Photograph                 18x18"                 

"A Nocturnal Mystery (with four heads, eyes or moons) hovering over Lake Michigan"

(This image of Lake Michigan on Milwaukee shores was made in 30 degrees below zero weather.  

The camera malfunctioned, and leaking light transformed the film's latent image 

with an unexpected unusual transformative delight.)

                 Homage Escher & Mannerism  P#32             Symmetrical Photograph                   18x18"                   

                                           "Fenced-off Industrial'Detention Complex"                                             

                                                    

Homage Escher & Mannerism       N#22                  Symmetrical Photograph             15x15"

                                                  "Ariel View, Detention Center"                                                  

Homage Escher & Mannerism  P#128                       Inkjet Print                             18x18"

"Figure Standing Behind Bars"

         Homage Escher & Mannerism  N#14               Symmetrical Photograph               15x15"                

                                   "Man covering his face with one hand; his other hand is                                

                                        placed upon the soaped store window with the spider-like shadows"                                    

                           I was about to take a picture of the soaped-up window with the shadows                              

on it when the man unexpectedly struck that pose for me. 

          Homage Escher & Mannerism                 N#27                    21.5" (W) x 17" (H)                        

                   Double-Symmetrical Photograph                  

                                                              "Rainbow colored arms, hands--and in the middle . . .                                                           

                                             the arms are in dark boxes"                                             

                Homage Escher & Mannerism   N#25         Two Fold  Symmetrical Photograph           16x20"                

                   "Man-ghost standing in a box contemplating his lived life          

                                looking at duality mirrors . . . or are they rings of fire?"      

                               Homage Escher & Mannerism  N#11                   Symmetrical Photograph                 15x15"                                

                                                    "Long White Hooded Figure with a short dark shadow"                                                     

                      

                           Homage Escher & Mannerism    N#12                Symmetrical Photograph               15x15"                               

                                                                 "Man Entangled in a web . . .  of his own making"                                     

 Homage Escher & Mannerism  P#91             Symmetrical  Photograph                       18x18"

                                                              "The Blue Angel of Tears"                                                                           

Homage Escher & Mannerism  N#150                Symmetrical Photograph                    18x18"   

"Four-faced Apparition"       

                Homage Escher & Mannerism  N#30            Symmetrical Photograph                    18x18"                    

"Bird Shadows on Venation Blinds with Light Streaks, 

 and a window in the background revealing blue sky" 

 

                 Homage Escher & Mannerism  N#43                   Symmetrical Photograph                 18x18"                       

                                            "Mythic Birds & Cats"                                               

 The source image is from my project In the Woods 

                         Homage Escher & Mannerism  P#89                  Symmetrical Photograph                  21x21"                        

                                                "Khidr: Earth Angel, Green Man"                                                     

My interest in Angels is based in the writings of Henry Corbin and Tom Cheetham.

See excerpts of their writing in my blog link here from my blog project The Angels  

 

                     Homage Escher & Mannerism    P#87            Quirky Symmetrical Photographs               21x21"                       

                                              "Dark Mysterious Meadow Landscape with Purple Sky, X"                                

  Homage Escher & Mannerism  N#55               Symmetrical  Abstract Photograph              18x18" 

                                                          "Shadow Tourists Wandering Among Vatican Columns"                                      

                   Homage Escher & Mannerism  N#70                  Symmetrical  Photograph                   18x18"                    

                                       "Pompeii Figures Under Glass with reflections of light above"                                         

 Homage Escher & Mannerism  N#55               Symmetrical  Photograph                              16x20" 

                                 "Old Broken Garage suspended in black space"                                 

I have been suspending things is black space since 2001 and the concept then , and that still

remains for me today, is that black space represents silence, both in music and in the

most sacred of all spaces, the Human Heart.  What we have witnessed 

  in Minnesota by Federal agents---by orders from  of our present 

Administration is . . .  deeply Heart-Breaking.

 Homage Escher & Mannerism  N#56               Symmetrical  Photograph                         15x15" 

                           "Young Father & Son in a room illuminated with florescent lights . . . and an open door"      

 Homage Escher & Mannerism  P#130                      Inkjet Print                                          18x18"  

"Thunder storms over the South meadow & pond"

*        *        *

Six Photographs from my 1975-76 blog project

The Persephone Series 

  This project is based on real events in my family-life that paralleled the Greek Myth of Persephone 

who was abducted by Hades and held captive, separated from her mother Demeter.

Visit my blog project The Persephone Series for the complete explanation.

                  Homage Escher & Mannerism  P#81       Inkjet Prints made from silver gelatin prints         18x18"                 

"The Greek Child-God, Persephone, grimacing & tearing after she was 

 abducted by Hades, separated from her mother, Demeter, and 

being held captive in the dark Underworld."

    Homage Escher & Mannerism  P#93              Persephone Series Photograph                 18x18"

 "Demeter (Persephone's mother) dreaming of her daughter in the Underworld"    

Homage Escher & Mannerism  P#127              Persephone Series Photograph                 18x18"
"Hades holding Persephone captive in the Underworld"

  Homage Escher & Mannerism  P#94            Persephone Series Photograph               15x15"

                                                 "Demeter, bathing in the dark waters of depression, longing to be                                                      

                                                                                        reunited with her daughter Persephone"                                                                                     

Homage Escher & Mannerism  P#125              Persephone Series Photograph                 18x18"

 "Persephone, feeling sad and lonely, bathing her feet 

                                        in the dark waters of an Underworld stream"                                        

                                                                                

Homage Escher & Mannerism  P#126              Persephone Series Photograph                 15x15"

"Hades, God of the Underworld, creating more and more mythic 'Underworlds'"

Please visit these two blog links  
The Persephone Series &  Part II Additional Images 

*         *        *

      

 Homage Escher & Mannerism  P#95                    Inkjet Print                     18x18"

                                                  "Double Portrait … Gloria, Sleeping"                                                

(See my project Silent Dialogues)

 Homage Escher & Mannerism  P#144                           Inkjet Print                            18x18"

"Gloria and Jessica . . . with an Eclipsed Moon"

This picture is--for me--about Gloria and Jessica getting back together after Jessica's

stay in Milwaukee's Children's Hospital for several days where she nearly died 

 from a very serious bacterial infection that mutated into a viral infection. 

Jessica was under a year old at the time.  I explain the whole story here.

Related to all this, I suspect, is something that happened one day when Gloria was walking 

with Jessica on their way to Jessica's play group.  Jessica, who was two or three years old 

at the time stopped and turned to Gloria and told her: "You weren't always my mom."

Gloria asked: "Who was I?" Jessica answered:  "You were my sister, and you died." 

        

                                 Homage Escher & Mannerism  P#84                  Symmetrical Photograph                         21x21"                         

                                              "The Witnessing Eye"                                                

                                            

Homage Escher & Mannerism  P#106                   Symmetrical  Photograph                 18x18"

                                                            "Dissolution by Fire"                                                                 
Visit my project:  Creation-Dissolution of A World

      

Homage Escher & Mannerism    P#76                  Portrait (out of focus)                             18x18" 

                                         "Gloria with her hand over her squinting eyes"                                   

   

Homage Escher & Mannerism  P#77                  Portrait (out of focus)                             18x18"

                     "Violent light striking (dissolving) Larry's face"                     

      

  Homage Escher & Mannerism  N#107                   Symmetrical  Photograph                 18x18"

                                                                         "Maya's Terrifying Mask of Illusion in the Age of Kali Yuga"                                                      

             Visit my two related projects:

Sacred Art & The Symbolic Photograph in the Age of Kali Yuga

Maya's Veils of Illusion    

    

Homage Escher & Mannerism  P#119           Two-fold Symmetrical Photograph                 15x15"

"A dead tree in Maine's Acadia National Park with a Strange frightening Angelic Presence"

I find this photograph both funny and frightening.  I detect a bit of witchcraft in it.

I included the image in my Angelic Presence project which included images

I had had made in Salem, MA.

    

Homage Escher & Mannerism  P#139           Symmetrical Photograph                 18x18"

"Snow Sprite" from my project "Silver World" 

         Homage Escher & Mannerism  P#38                Symmetrical Photograph                    21x21"       

                                                  "Circles of Illumination Hovering Over Infinity"                                                   

Islamic Sacred Art is often about the Endless, Infinite, Eternal Divine Presence.

See my blog project:  "An Imaginary Book" and in particular the chapter Infinite Beauty : Texts   

Homage Escher & Mannerism  P#78               Faint Photograph                         18x18"

                                       "A Running Bull, about to die in the Foggy Fading Departing Landscape"                         

Homage Escher & Mannerism  P#79               Faint Photograph                         18x18"        

                                     "Departing Grasshopper"                             

Homage Escher & Mannerism  P#80               Faint Photograph                         18x18"

                         "Two conjoined Geckos on a white wall in a dark restaurant in Cost Rico"                      

                            (The FLASH on my camera unexpectedly went off when I took this picture                         

                              and everything turned white . . . . except four eyes.)                         

 

Homage Escher & Mannerism  P#151        Inkjet Print Photograph                    21x21"

Divided Apparitional Face    

Homage Escher & Mannerism  P#124            Inkjet Print Photograph                             18x18"

"Portrait" (Elephant Head)

Homage Escher & Mannerism  P#72              Inkjet Print - Faint Photograph                15x15"

"Figure walking in a snow storm"

Homage Escher & Mannerism  P#98               Faint Photograph                         15x15"

                                                                  "Limbless Tree in a winter fog"    

                                       

               Homage Escher & Mannerism  P#52             Symmetrical  Photograph                    18x18"                 

                                      "Shaking Pompeii Piazza"                                  

               Homage Escher & Mannerism  N#26         Two-fold + Faint Symmetrical Photograph          18x18"                

                "A Crowd of People--and its double--standing together, become transparent               

                               as they look directly into The BIG FLASH of LIGHT"      

               

 Homage Escher & Mannerism    N#20        Two Fold Symmetrical Photograph        18x18"

"The Screaming Ghost  of the Hudson River" 

                                       

  Homage to Escher  N#15          Symmetrical Photograph                      15x15"                  

"Children at play Reaching-For & Holding-Up The Big Ball"  

     Homage Escher & Mannerism  P#135         Inkjet Print      Faint photograph                 18x18" 

"Waving Goodbye"

Homage Escher & Mannerism  N#62                   Symmetrical  Photograph                         18x18"

                                              "Figure standing on her toes in Death Valley"                                        

       Homage Escher & Mannerism  P#114          Inkjet Print - Photograph                        18x18         

                                                          Abstract Portrait: ". . . of a Constantly Talking Liar"                                        

                                                      ("If the mouth is moving it is telling lies.")                                      

          

Homage Escher & Mannerism  P#157          Inkjet Print - Abstract Photograph               18x18

("Galloping Horse"--a solarized Multiple-exposed collage of leafs and negatives of a woods"

Visit my project In the Woods 

Homage Escher & Mannerism  P#111              Inkjet Print - Photograph                 18x18"

"Masked Ghost wandering around downtown Atlanta, Georgia"

from my project Atlanta City Series

      

     Homage Escher & Mannerism  P#131                      Inkjet Print                                          18x18" 

        "The Unanswered Question"  

         (A dog?  Looking at an upside-down, suspended Y? . . . or perhaps a Question Mark?)

https://thedepartinglandscape.blogspot.com/2011/02/persephone-series.html