The Blocktrades Contest. 'Be open to 'Sacred Space' Wednesday Walk. Sculpture by the Sea Bondi. Sydney. Australia. Original Photography.
Empty my mind.
Of all preconceived notions.
Expectations. Stagnant patterns of seeing.
A brighter and far more joyful world is awaiting me there. ~Ally.
As much as anybody in the entire universe.
Deserve your love and affection. ~Gautama Buddha.
Wednesday Walk.
Wednesday Walk initiated by @tattoodjay is a wonderful way to see those hidden gems in your 'ordinary' environment, and experience those unexpected magical moments when you can truly delight in your world. ~Ally.
On my #WednesdayWalk this week I'd like to introduce you to Horizon, a courageous young man: Sitting in stillness with his back to the ocean: Exposing his nakedness to hundreds of thousands of people: Undisturbed by all their giggles and remarks: Contemplating his life and the changing values of his culture.
Horizon was just one of the 100 sculptures from 21 countries that were installed on both the flat and steeply sloped grasslands of Marks Park, on the pristine sands of Tamarama Bay and all along the 2 kilometre pathway that follows the spectacular high cliffs overlooking the Pacific Ocean from Bondi Beach to Tamarama Bay at this year's Sculpture by the Sea Bondi.
This video produced by Sculpture by the Sea will give you an idea of the spectacular landscape that this exhibition is set in.
Sculpture by the Sea Bondi.
The Bondi Sculpture by the Sea is now the largest public international annual sculpture exhibition in the world and this year eight works from the Central Academy of Art in Beijing were included in the exhibition. One of them being Mu Boyan's 'larger than life' photorealistic Horizon which certainly dominated the creative landscape and absolutely delighted the hundreds of thousands of visitors.
Mu Boyan.
Mu Boyan is a contemporary Chinese sculptor who is becoming well known for his small-scale and larger than life sculptures of obese young men. His highly surreal figures are made with resin and mixed media and the technical finish is superb.
But there's much more to Mu Boyan's work than meets the eye. These huge men with their multilayers of fat with puffy limbs, feet and hands, finding themselves in all sorts of bizarre positions in different situations are a BIG reflection of the transforming views of obesity in modern day China.
Where obesity was once seen as a sign of wealth, the current view is now shifting towards the Western perception of the overweight as being quite unsightly and extremely unhealthy. And in his humorous and satirical fashion, Mu Boyan brings this issue to our awareness ~ Staring us straight in the face ~ So that we can't avoid it.
Another time on my #WednesdayWalk I'll share with you some of the looks of astonishment and amusement on the faces of a group of young school girls as they caught their first glimpse of Horizon ~ But for now I'm about to do something completely out of character and tell you why I'm entering The Blocktrades Contest even though I don't actually meet all the criteria and why I deserve to be noticed by @anomadsoul and @blocktrades.
The Blocktrades Contest.
I'm entering this contest because I wish to show my support for the many wonderful people who I truly admire for their continued engagement with the Steemit community ~ Regardless of fluctuations in the Steemit economy.
Be open to 'Sacred Space.' was published before this contest announcement was published and it gives an example of my art and photography and the pride I take in presenting it at Steemit.
I love the way the Universe works and I try to give examples of this all the time in my articles. For instance just today I received a notice from @steemitboard stating that I've now made more than 10000 upvotes.
I joined Steemit in July 2016 and my reputation is 58 without bidbots.
I've been away from Steemit twice, for a few months: See NOTES below.
However, both times were absolutely invaluable as I came back with renewed enthusiasm for Steemit KNOWING that there's nothing like this social platform and it's community anywhere else. My Steemit friends are treasures ~ And the gems of insight they give me are worth all the world to me.
Having an introverted and slightly dyslectic nature, I find it challenging to have millions of social connections and so I'm not particularly active in any of the Discord channels. But I do LOVE the connections I have made just responding to other people's work and the comments people make on my art/photography.
I’m somewhat of a perfectionist: In both my art and in the writing about it. But I post at least 3 or 4 articles a week and easily meet the number of comments requirement.
Sculpture by the Sea Bondi.
I hope you'll come along with me on my next Wednesday Walk when I'll take you back along the pathway overlooking the ocean from Bondi Beach to Tamarama Bay, to see some of the other sculptures like Embrace by Andrew Rogers that were installed in this year's Sculpture by the Sea, Bondi.
And I still want to show you the indigenous line drawing of a big fish that was carved at least 2,000 years ago into one of the large shelf rocks alongside the pathway. Initially, this carving was thought to be of a whale but it's now considered that it's more likely a shark.
Embrace by Andrew Rogers.
Closely
In one's arms:
Form not anchored by weight:
Motion within. Rhythms. Lustrous sheen. ~Andrew Rogers.
And give your whole heart and soul to it ~Gautama Buddha.
NOTES:
Being away from Steemit.
The first time was to work with Medium and Niume (no longer operating) as well as Instagram.
The second time was to update my own website and blog as well as experiment with new art mediums. And just at that time, @carlgnash introduced to me to the DeepDreamGenerator.
The DeepDreamGenerator.
I became quite besotted by the way this software could digitally enhance imagery. My aim in working with the DeepDreamGenerator was to bring a new magic into my photographs and I also felt that it would inspire me to draw and paint with an extra dash of flamboyance.
I thought it would only take me a day or so to learn how to combine two images in order to generate an enhanced version of the first image ~ So that the images in my Steemit articles would have that 'something special' we artists are always seeking.
Well, it took me about 5 months to realize that being in the top 10 of the DeepDreamGenerator Leader board wasn't the most important thing in my life and that my images only needed the slightest of enhancement ~ If any.
Horizon: Slightly stylized with the DeepDreamGenerator.
How much you loved: How gently you lived.
And how gracefully you let go of things not meant for you.
~Gautama Buddha.
My Wednesday Walks.
- Walking around my own front yard Garden.
- Spring in the Sydney Botanical Gardens with a touch of Marilyn Monroe
- 'Artisans in the Gardens' at the Lion Gate Lodge, Sydney Botanical Gardens.
- Carnivorous Plants Exhibition: Plants with Bite. The Calyx at Sydney Botanical Gardens.
- Australian Icon at the Roseville Golf Course.
- 'After the Swim.' Sculpture by the Sea Bondi. Sydney. Australia.
SONY Mark2 A7: 35 mm:
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That quote alone was worth coming to your blog. What perfect wisdom. I could use this reminder daily. Thanks for sharing your positive light here! Good luck in the contest! :)
It's such a heart connecting quote isn't it Katrina. I need to remind myself of it constantly too.
Some people thought Horizon must have been meditating and so he must have been a Buddhist monk. But a naked and over-weight monk? The contradiction was so provocative. Bringing about a lot of laughter.
His face looks serene ~ But then as I was looking at him I had the feeling that he may not have been all that happy. And with all the associations and attitudes we have with weight ~ I wanted a Buddha quote that would let him know he was worthy of his own love and affection.
You contribute so much of yourself to the Steemit community Katrina and your enthusiasm and vitality are infectious and so I know you will do really well in this contest. It's probably been a wonderful inner journey for all of us to affirm that: Yes, I am contributing to the well being of our community. ♥︎♥︎⚖️♥︎♥︎
Good luck with the contest! I think you are a great candidate :)
Thank you so much @delishtreats. I feel that everyone who entered made a special effort to show their support of our Steemit community. Sending out a great message that we really value being able to gather here. ♥︎♥︎⚖️♥︎♥︎
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Oh, I did too. I don't think I'll be able to make 7 posts in 7 days though as my articles usually take me longer than a day to write. But we'll see how the week flows. ♥︎♥︎⚖️♥︎♥︎
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Thank you so much @share2steem and @tipU. ♥︎♥︎⚖️♥︎♥︎
That sculpture is so cool, loved the photos and video
I think you should be OK for the contest and well deserving to be considered for it
Thanks ever so much Jay.
Before I actually went to Sculpture by the Sea, I'd seen photographs of Horizon and have to admit I had quite a strong preconceived notion of it.
But seeing the way people interacted with this work and then understanding the artist's intent completely turned that around 360.
Hence the 'poem.'
I posted this by mistake ~ Right as I was about to explain why I'm entering the contest ~ And had a friend waiting for me as we had planned to go to Qigong together. Said I couldn't go but she wouldn't hear of it. So here it is a few hours later ~ And for sure I've missed the deadline now ~ But I'll continue as if there isn't one. Because it still feels really important for me to express what I bring to the Steemit community. Without overly big noting. ♥︎♥︎⚖️♥︎♥︎
I just saw this morning we both qualified for the challenge good luck :)
Wonder of wonders Jay. It looks like it's in order of time. So we JUST made it. So happy. ♥︎♥︎⚖️♥︎♥︎
Yeah Who knows who will win it but at least we made it to be considered
With so many people making wonderful contributions to the Steemit community, I'm looking forward to reading the winning articles now Jay. I think it made us all see how fabulous this community really is. Hope you have a fantastic week. Another Hope: Hoping to complete my Sculpture by the Sea #WednesdayWalk this week. ♥︎♥︎⚖️♥︎♥︎
Yes indeed I do so agree the amount of people that entered and from the selection, I looked at all great posts gave a breath of good news at the moment with all the people posting less because of the price of steem
you to have a good week ahead
I think you made the deadline, by my calculations the deadline was about half an hour ago so I think you made the deadline ;)
FANTASTIC. Did you finish your entry Jay? ♥︎♥︎⚖️♥︎♥︎
YEs I did posted it a little while ago :)
GREAT. Will have a peep now. ♥︎♥︎⚖️♥︎♥︎
Good luck to both of you! This is a wonderful entry @Allyinspirit and now I will have to give JJ @tattoodjay a look.
You two rock! Good luck!!!! xo
Thanks so much Denise. My entry didn't meet all the requirements as I simply don't have the extra time to be all that active in any of the Discord channels.
I'm full of admiration for people like yourself and Jay, Melinda and @sunscape who put so much time and effort into orchestrating Challenges and Contests. And feel, you are the ones, truly worthy of being recognized in a contest of this nature.
For me, it was a great opportunity to show my support and admiration for all the people who continue to share great content and connect with one another here at Steemit. ♥︎♥︎⚖️♥︎♥︎
Wonder of wonders Jay. It looks like it's in order of time. So we JUST made it. So happy. ♥︎♥︎⚖️♥︎♥︎
yes we just made it:)
You are a Steem treasure and well deserving @allyinspirit - good luck in the contest!
Thanks ever so much Carl. I think this contest has brought out the treasure in so many people. We are blessed that a social network like Steemit exists. I feel blessed for the wonderful friendships that are all forming here.
And I feel so much gratitude towards @anomadsoul and @blocktrades for orchestrating this 'event' that has made people affirm their own value. It certainly did that for me. ♥︎♥︎⚖️♥︎♥︎
Carl, I just popped into the DDG to slightly enhance the image of Horizon and looked at my last post there, saying I would be back in a few weeks ~ That was ten weeks ago now. 😊 It's great that I can use the DDG at any time now ~ In the highest resolution ~ But privately.
No regrets that it held me captive for so long as I felt I gained so much from playing with it. ♥︎♥︎⚖️♥︎♥︎
The sculpture looks so striking captured in your photo.
Good luck with the contest, Alison :).
Thanks so much @scrawly. I think it's the blue sky against all those fleshy tones. 😊
Horizon would make such an interesting subject for a line drawing.
I spent a lot of time just watching people's responses as they came up the stone stairs and first saw Horizon. Watching the expressions on the faces of a school group of early teen boys was hilarious. They were a little more 'spontaneous' than the girls. ♥︎♥︎⚖️♥︎♥︎
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Wonderful for Horizon to find a place on the Steemit Worldmap. Thank you. @steemitworldmap. ♥︎♥︎⚖️♥︎♥︎
Ohhhh... all the very best for the contest! And I thoroughly enjoyed the post - the video and your photos, and quotes! As always...