Thursday, June 26, 2008

Repetition




Repetition is a core design value in many forms of art including painting, photography, and interiors. Olafur Eliasson utilizes repetition in his photography with the works above titled The morning cloud series, The fault series, Reykjavik series, and The waterfall series. Individually each photograph is good, but together they are great. I especially love The morning cloud series because it illustrates a passing of time with a simple cloud. Lovely. How do you use repetition?

Side note - Thanks to everyone who participated in the The Rules of Blogging discussion. Looks like many of us were on the same page about personal rules - we value comments, the blog community, and overall niceness. I also found that many of us felt bad, including myself, for not keeping up with comments or posting regularly. Do you remember the reason you started blogging? Many of use would say for FUN. So, let's make a pact and not feel bad anymore...as in life...you can only do what you can at your best. Blogging should be fun and supportive, and we understand people are busy. Here's to feeling good about yourself. Amazing feedback and insightful opinions as always!

25 comments:

JanelleGrace said...

I love these so much.

I guess, in everyone's photos, there is some repetition because people will take photos of what they like. I do love the time sequences in these, I remember a photographer who took a photo of the same part of sky every day for a year. It was amazing to see it change.

please sir said...

Janelle - great comment. What a neat topic to explore. I can recall a photographer who photographed a family portrait every year for several years. It was amazing to see how each person had transformed, and when they were having a good or bad year.

Anonymous said...

Wow - the morning cloud and the Reykjavik series are incredible. I could stare at those all day....

Victoria said...

These are wonderful images. I to am attracted to repetition, and wonder why it is so compelling. Maybe it is simply the way our brains are hard-wired. We learn by repetition, and the world around us is filled with repetition... There is a certain sense of comfort and strength to it.

Krissy | Paper Schmaper said...

I came back!!!

Love these images :)

yasmine said...

the gray buildings one is my favourite! i think that seeing one thing alone can make it mundane, but seeing something in repeat makes it more interesting--like in fabric or something.

speaking of buildings and repeats, have you seen the book city of darkness? it's a collection of photos on old hong kong ghetto structures. it's amazing too.

Unknown said...

ooh, the one with the buildings is my favorite! i love seeing things in repeat. it's like it puts it in a different context and a different story. love it!

Regardez Moi said...

diana - i love LOVE these images. of course, in the second one of the rocks, all i kept seeing were butts. because i have the mind of a 2 year old. or a 12 year old. whichever. but i really loved them.

also, thanks for the comment on my nastygrams post. This is the 2nd one I've gotten - the most recent, combined with your blogging rules post, inspired to me to find out what others do when/if they receive them. This most recent one was a doozy (the anonymous comment in my "Help A Brother Out" post - if you feel like reading it). Some people!

Anonymous said...

These are great. I am particularly drawn to the Rekjavik series. I don't think I've ever intentionally explored with repetition in this manner, but I think I'd like to.

please sir said...

Thanks guys. Ok, trying out new way to comment - pop up window without word verification. Hopefully no spam...crossing fingers.

SandraRee said...

I love the The waterfall series, I'm in water all the time so that goes without saying. And yes, I take pictures of, you guessed it, water, over and over and over...

Ann Marie said...

i like the waterfalls. i'm enjoying my eye moving around the group and taking in all of the color variations within the same theme.

Anonymous said...

Great post! I'm glad you asked the blogging question! I've been curious too!

picciolo said...

this pictures are great! Just caught up with your rules of blogging, what a great post
: )

Annapurna said...

These are cool pics. Mosaic of similar pictures.

I had to go back and look where I said ETA. Edited To Add :-)

I am keeping my fingers crossed for you too about the spam.
Thanks for disabling it.

karey m. said...

loving that last paragraph...excellent reminders!

thanks for it all...

Anonymous said...

Cool, especially like the one with the houses!

Cindy said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
Cindy said...

i love the repetition, especially the waterfalls.

i love your side note. when i started our blog i received some very good advice that i think of when i'm feeling out of rhythm -
do it for yourself and don't let anyone bully you, especially you (meaning me)!

Wayfaring Wanderer said...

I bet that I could come up with a similar set from all my waterfall photos!! That's pretty cool.....

Jude said...

Yep, every comment does count!

These are beautiful compilations here, and ditto on your Rules of Blogging summation (as I'm feeling bad for not posting something new last night, but was oh so tired!).

JLC Studio said...

One of our clients is an art collector and he has a few installations just like this...in fact, the top series looks almost identical to one that he has in his office! Wonder if it's the same artist? Great post!

Julia said...

*HUGS*

I'm so, so glad you did that post about Rule of Blogging! It was thought provoking and intriguing to hear everyone's thoughts on the subject.

I will make a pact, I will blog because I love something, or want to share or simply to say hi!

Paul Pincus said...

we have an eliasson series! he's a true genius. 8 years ago his work was still quite affordable. oh, and he's very, very gorgeous.

love your weblog!

Vana said...

I love the third one from the top. I am a sucker for pictures of architectural details....great stuff!

Post a Comment

Thank you for taking the time to comment. Even if I don't get a chance to respond please know that I read and appreciate your thoughts. Every comment counts!

Related Posts with Thumbnails