Simply At Rest
by Mark Tisdale
Title
Simply At Rest
Artist
Mark Tisdale
Medium
Photograph - Photo
Description
Anyone who wanders through my galleries a little bit will discover that I have a quiet fascination with cemeteries. A lot of large cemeteries from the 19th century onward are, after all, large park-like settings. But cemeteries are also chock full of artistic expression from bygone eras. It's fascinating to look at and the ultimate expression of humans trying to be remembered after they're gone.
This is probably the simplest of my cemetery images, but to me it's a piece that's packed with a powerful message. The first thing you may be wondering is if it was staged. I am after all a huge proponent that it's the final image that matters. Does it connect with the viewer? That's after all what matters most with art.
But in this case, no staging was necessary. I was wandering through Atlanta's vast old Oakland cemetery when I saw this rust red leave resting just as you see it at the base of a tombstone. Directly above it was the simple epitaph, "At Rest" and I loved it. Even the lighting at that moment was special, the way it washed over the engraved words and the leaf. It had a feeling of a new beginning, a next chapter.
There's a lot of meaning in this one for me, and I hop you find it an equally powerful piece of art from the simplest of elements.
Uploaded
September 3rd, 2013
Embed
Share