Focus on Life: Week 18

Sally Russick of The Studio Sublime is hosting a year long challenge which is... sublime... as you'd expect with such a studio name. The challenge is named 'Focusing on Life' and every week Sally is sending a prompt on what should we focus the following week.

The prompt of this week?!

Abstract: the use of a visual language of form, color and line to create a composition which may exist with a degree of independence from visual references in the world.

I have to admit I almost passed the opportunity - for me abstract is the modern painting in strange colours and harsh lines, something I don't have too much patience for. Then I had a short conversation with myself, asking why do I want to pass? because I will have a crazy week (Sunday is our Easter!)? because I don't like abstract that much (or my interpretation of it)? because I am afraid? A little bit of each :)

What am I afraid of? Not sure how to define the feeling, so I'll leave it at that for now.

So I started hunting something that would be abstract - and then I stopped. I wanted to incorporate Easter somehow, but it's too early in the week to have useful pictures. So I looked for last year pictures and in one of them I found this detail:

I loved it so much: the shine and glow of the orange skin (in the right bottom corner), the lovely spring branches detailed on the candle, the warm light reminding me of the most special night of the year, approaching soon!

The picture is edited a little bit (highlighted to bring the glow in focus) - and I still don't think of it as abstract. But it perfectly matches the mood of this week (we call it The 'Big' Week) so I will go with it!

A little bit of abstract patterns on our brightly coloured eggs:

And the most concrete table - as it was last year right after we came home from the midnight mass:

I am looking forward to this week's celebration and, most of all, to getting together with family and friends and spending this bright and luminous day in peace, with the kids running around happily.

Thank you for visiting! and thank you, Sally, for getting me out of my comfort zone :)

For other abstract interpretations, please visit Sally's place where we gather for lovely conversation!