Week TWO ... The Guiding Light

I was walking near the CAC last Thursday afternoon and was feeling a bit anxious.  My school work load had increased exponentially in the few days prior and I was trying to organize in my brain just how I was going to tackle it.  As I came to the top of the stairs near the red logs, I peered over the railing, and on the grass below, I noticed the sun’s reflection of the vertical steel louvers that decorate the side of the CAC building.  The reflection was represented by long rectangular bars of light that were relatively evenly spaced, but had variation in light brightness and density.  I immediately felt a sense of relief and a moment of pause and breath. This reaction could possibly have stemmed from the comfort of finally finding something interesting to photograph and write about, or the thought that the long organized bars of light were a type of visual metaphor to help me realize that everything I was stressed over would eventually fall into place.  Though not as soft and comforting as the shadow of foliage, the angular shapes inspired me and filled me with creative thoughts.  I stood staring at them for a minute and then got closer to take them in from different angles.  They felt guiding, as if they longed to point me in a positive direction.  I would tend to think that for some, these bars of light may have triggered feelings of restriction and indifference, and might feel cold.  Yet because I am drawn to things geometric, the image felt welcoming and intentional, especially with the surrounding trees and other greenery to add brilliant color and depth.  I’m not exactly sure why I chose to walk that way, at that moment, on that day but there is a small part of me that feels I was being guided … that alone allows me to find peace in our sometimes frenetic world.  I think this look would be extremely effective as a final look to a piece; sending the dancer off into the world of what lies ahead … bringing a piece to closure with optimism and forward direction.