Artist Statement: Autumn Light

I treasure autumn in the garden as a reminder of all that I should not take for granted. Thoreau captured the feeling well in his 1862 essay Autumn Tints.

In New England, where I garden, summer’s bountiful brightness gives way to the ragged remains of plants using their last burst of energy to set seed for the next spring to come. Theirs is a fugitive beauty about to be extinguished by winter winds.

I believe that all leaves, even grasses and mosses, acquire brighter colors just before their fall.

The ephemeral delicacy of autumn plants communicates intimately of our own frailty. Reaching for the sun, now moving away, some flowers stretch their faces skyward. Some are balding, their petals flown away. Others snuggle into fallen leaves to find a last bit of comfort and warmth. 

The flowers, fruits and leaves are mature now. Their colors deep, muted and earthy as they return to the soil for another birth come spring.

It is pleasant to walk over the beds of these fresh, crisp, and rustling leaves. How beautifully they go to their graves!

The shadows fall more deeply across the landscape in autumn enriching the dappled light that remains. A walk around my garden now seems new. The same walk I took in June, invigorated by luscious peonies, roses and iris, slows in autumn revealing the passing of time. Mine and theirs. In this best of all seasons:

You can no longer tell what in the dance is life and what is light.

I present these images printed directly on brushed aluminum. The aluminum is brushed either silver or gold which gives the photograph a glowing brushed metallic look in the bright areas and matte surface without reflections in the rest of the printed areas. The Dibond Butlerfinish is waterproof and suitable even for sheltered outdoor areas.