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Pale Glow

April nightfall – chill, raindrops on pale petals of daffodils and tulips, roses

The garden after dark, all the myths…

In antiquity a marriage outside one’s social class would bring shame over the family. Abductions were staged to justify such liaison.(1) Against this background the story of the abduction of Persephone appears in a new light. It enabled her to be part of and live in two worlds, which were otherwise closed away from each other. She maintained the privileges of the world of the living, but also dined with the dead in the underworld and was let into its secrets. According to legend she picked daffodils when Hades ‘abducted’ her to the underworld. Her story remains fascinating, her flowers remind us of it.

Martin Luther too staged his abduction. Believed to be dead by his foes, he used the time ‘in the dark’ to translate the bible from original sources into German language (with a little help from his friends), one of the most significant cultural contributions of mankind. His signature flower became the rose. (2)

(1) Harold Roth, The Witching Herbs, p. 48 “Kidnapped Brides”

(2) The Luther seal or Luther rose is a widely recognized symbol for Lutheranism: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Luther_rose

Besides…

I watched lots of docus on Arte +7. Yes, the one about the comet (so amazing) and the series on space time and matter. About the chief and the forests. Also earlier about the super plants. And now I am hung up on the magic garden series… eg this one about the garden as a place of initiation: http://www.arte.tv/guide/de/057898-003-A/magische-garten

Tags: abduction myths, afterdark, daffodils, darkness, dim light, dusk, evening, flower symbolism, flowers, garden, greek mythology, hades, initiation, low light, luther rose, martin luther, night photography, nightfall, pale light, persephone, underworld

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Categories esotericism and occultism, flowers, garden, nature photography, photography, plants and herbalism

Pillars Perichoresis

19 Feb

Several of my artworks and one essay are featured in the now sold-out “Pillars – Perichoresis” anthology by Anathema Publishing, 2016. The book is a compilation of the first three “Pillars” journals and contains additional material that was not part of previous releases. I have contributed to all three journals and look forward to continue working with Anathema Publishing in the future.

Tags: anathema publishing, anthology, art, bleeding trees, books, esoteric art, esoteric literature, essays, hardcover, Hecate, Hekate, Heqet-Hekate, limited editions, occultism, Pillars, Pillars Journal, Pillars Perichoresis, published work, rare books, Regina Amandrakina, writing

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Categories art, books, esotericism and occultism, illustration, nature photography, photography, published work, Teufelskunst, trees, writing

Wounds

14 Feb

The Bleeding Tree

Almond Tears

Beech

Lachten

Cherry Tree

Ash

Ivy

Listen to the Silence

Womb

Willow

Swallowing Death

A collection of photographs of wounds, scars and malformations on trees

Tags: bleeding trees, conceptual, human interference, lachten, malformations, malformed, nature, nature photography, scar tissue, scars, tree photography, tree resin, trees, wounds

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Categories conceptual, nature, nature photography, trees, Uncategorized

New Year’s Moon, Venus, Mars Alignment

1 Jan

The first evening of the year 2017 gave a magical sight: the sharp sickle of the waxing moon’s crescent aligned with Venus and Mars at around 7 pm. In addition one could see structures on the dark side of the moon, which are usually merge with the dark night sky and are not visible. Perhaps the sky was brighter tonight due to light being reflected by dust particles in the air from last night’s fireworks. The photos were taken at around 7 pm in Dresden Dölzschen.

Tags: 2017, astro-photography, crescent moon, evening sky, long exposure, Mars, moon, moon crescent, moon sickle, new year, new year's, night, night photography, night sky, nightsky, photography, sigma lens, sigma zoom, sky, sun moon stars, Venus, waxing moon, zoom lens

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Categories dresden, nature, nature photography, photography, sky Photography, sun moon stars

Sunflower Field and Sunset

12 Aug

Sonnenuntergang Dölzschen

Abendstimmung Dresden Dözschen

Abendhimmel Dresden Pesterwitz

Visiting a sunflower field, before venturing on to gather wild herbs and rowan berries. I recharge and absorb the warmth of the evening sun. The temps have dropped to a chilling 12 °C. Going deeper into the sunflower field, a bee, stiffened from the cold, is stuck to a huge sunflower head. I wonder if it will make it through the night. It would wake up to plenty of food though. A few seconds later the sun has vanished and the sky is ablaze…

Tags: august, bee, bokeh, clouds, Dresden Dölzschen, dusk, evening, evening sky, field, flares, flowers, moon, moonrise, sky, summer, sun rays, sunflowers, sunlight, sunset

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Categories dresden, flowers, nature, nature photography, sky Photography, sun moon stars

Bees on our White Lavender

11 Jul

Every year, dozens of bees and bumblebees are collecting nectar and pollen on our white lavender. Now is that time again. The above photo was a lucky shot. My lens is not really suited for macro photography. But in this image all the details of the insect are clearly visible, whereas the surrounding has a nice bokeh effect, created by motion blur and depth of field. So here we go, another bee joins the “flower devils” photo series.

Tags: bee, bees, biene, bokeh, enchanted garden, flower devils, flowers, fragrant flowers, garden, garden flowers, insect photography, insects, Lavendel, lavender, macro & close-up, macro photography, nature photography, pollination, pollinators, white flowers, white lavender

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Categories garden, macro & close-up, nature, nature photography, photography

Back at the Blackthorn Gate

2 Jun

2016 05 29 Sunset

The sunset that evening

2016 05 29 Meadow

The grass on the meadow in full bloom; everything smelled like summer

2016 05 29 Thorngate

The Blackthorn hedge forms a gate around a beaten path. As the former hedge slowly grows into trees, they begin to wither from within, whilst new blackthorn shrubs grow on the outside. With the years a dense thicket is formed, where birds and other animals find a home.

2016 05 29 Schierling

A poison hemlock plant, found on a meadow. The purple spots on green stem and pungent smell easily distinguish it from other umbelliferous plants.

From the gathered blackthorn branches thorn-crowns are made. I’ve been working with the blackthorn for over a decade; since three years I am returning annually to gather branches for making these thorn-crowns. This year I gathered material for making four to five crowns. Two are already reserved. E-mail me if you are interested in receiving one as well.

Tags: bellicum, blackthorn, Dornenkränze, Dornenkronen, Dornentor, green grass, harvest, light and shadow, meadow, poison hemlock, rituals, Schierling, Schlehen, Schwarzdorn, summer, sunset, thorn crowns, thorn gate, tree lights, trees

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Categories nature, nature photography, pflanzenkunst, photography, plants and herbalism, Teufelskunst, trees

Fingers II

9 Apr

This time it is not about a surreal dream and also not about the fennel. But it is about another plant’s “fingers”. In folklore the male fern’s “hand” is a lucky charm, meant to bestow fortunes and the power over the souls of the dead to it’s owner. In order to obtain it, the sorcerer must harvest the male fern’s root on the Eve of St. John. Then he must roast the root in the fire. The hand is made in such manner as to bind five strands of the fronds together: the root base of the stem is left attached and the rest of the frond’s foliage is removed. The result resembles a “hand”, with tendons (hairy stems) and fingers (stipe bases). Frankly, I never made such “hand” in this manner. But I’ve gathered plenty of male fern roots and had the most magical experiences granted through working with these roots in various ways, always discovering new aspects to this wondrous plant. Above is another version of this “lucky hand”, formed by the stipe bases and a single frond.

Btw., the stipe bases of the male fern’s fronds are green and spongy towards the center, whereas as the outer (old) parts turn black and rot. So if you were to use the root, make sure you actually use the parts that still have juices in them. Below is a close-up of how that should look: