Sanctuary

Sanctuary ©2022 - At some point in our lives, all of us have the need for a place of refuge from something, whether it’s physical, mental or imagined. Some seek it in religion, some in nature, others through meditation. However you get to this shelter, be it physical or mental, wouldn’t it be comforting to know you could enter a single space, available to all creatures, whenever needed? Such is the nature of this piece. I began with an image I captured of a somewhat broken, bare tree with limbs that seemed to be flailing at a sky filled with menacing, dark clouds. The original foreground was too overgrown so I replaced it with tall grasses and small flowering plants from another image. The amazing crows, sadly often associated in folklore with misfortune and death, have been maligned enough to seek a safe haven from time to time. The ethereal Monarch butterflies, their numbers in decline with loss of habitat and milkweed plants (the only food their caterpillars can eat) could also use a safe place to land. Enter my young heroine. She has the power to shelter them from the approaching storm and other misfortunes. One by one they make their way to her, for beneath her parasol lies the portal where all creatures are welcome to enter the “Sanctuary”.

  

Under a Gypsy Moon

 Under a Gypsy Moon ©2021 - The background of this piece is a foggy field of gold and burgundy grasses with mostly bare trees I captured in the vicinity of Middle Valley NJ. Even though it was late in the afternoon, the moon was not present but was added later in the composition. I came across the wooden horse with peeling paint in an antique store in Peddler’s Village, Lahaska, PA (near the town of New Hope, PA). His wings were added from one of the many vultures I’ve photographed (I also added a tail from a real horse as his original was mostly torn away). I’m not sure if he was formally part of a carousel, but in the antique store he was a “rocking horse”. The narrative I envisioned is similar to the fairy tale of Pinocchio who, as a wooden puppet, wanted desperately to be a “real boy”. One night my wooden horse is befriended by a woman (a self portrait) who helps him escape the carousel and fulfill his dreams. She leads him into a field and under the spell of a full Gypsy moon. Bathed in it’s magical light, his transformation into a real horse with wings to fly begins. The crows and a flock of blackbirds (from my travels) were added to give him the confidence and inspiration needed for his journey to freedom. 

A Gypsy Moon

Come walk with me under a Gypsy Moon

through trees laden with beads of mist,

shimmering like diamonds from every limb.

Follow my footsteps over golden grasses

softly falling aside; a path in this place

conjuring hope for magic, desires and dreams.

Fly with birds that swoop and soar and glide

through fog filled skies; no fear, no regret,

calling out it’s time, come and test your wings!

                              - Darlene Foster

The Gingerbread Men

The Gingerbread Men ©2021 - Two images of the ruins of the Bethlehem Baptist Church in Hunterdon County, NJ are blended together for the background of this piece. I first photographed it in June 2020 when it was blanketed in lush greenery inside it’s walls. I returned to photograph it again in March 2021 when the leaves were gone and only bare, crawling vines were left, exposing more of it’s interior. Built in 1858, it was abandoned in 1906 as many members moved out of the area. The owner, whose family was part of the congregation, still cares for the surrounding property and graveyard while allowing the church to slowly return to the earth. The 2 young people perched in the vines atop the stone wall (from my vintage photo collection, restored and colorized) brought to mind the dark fairy tale of Hansel and Gretel. The story harks back to the great famine of 1314 to 1322 when starvation led people to killing or abandoning their children and even cannibalism. One of the more palatable versions by the Grimm brothers involve the wicked stepmother forcing the father to abandon Hansel and Gretel in the woods as they can no longer feed them. Overhearing the plan, Hansel leaves a trail of bread crumbs to follow home. The crumbs are eaten by birds and after being lost for days, they follow a beautiful, white bird to a clearing and find a cottage made of gingerbread, cake and candy. A witch, who built the house to waylay children to cook and eat, appears and lures them in with promises of food. As she opens the oven door to check the fire, Gretel, realizing the plan, shoves her in and slams the door. The children discover a vase full of precious jewels, escape with the treasure, and live happily ever after! In my version, Hansel and Gretel rest on the stone wall after following a black vulture (instead of a beautiful white bird) to the witches domain (the church ruins instead of the cottage). My witch (a composite of 3 vintage figures) approaches via a window on the church alter offering a basket brimming with animated gingerbread men (from my Xmas tree ornaments) making their way to Hansel and Gretel. This is where my part of the story ends and the viewer’s begins!

A Battle of Wills

 

A Battle of Wills ©2021 - I began this piece with an image of a field from western NJ with a backdrop of tall, glittering grasses. Unfortunately, a highway was behind them so I replaced it with a wall of birch trees taken in another area of the field. The fox, sadly, was not photographed live but behind glass as part of a group of animals on exhibit created by a taxidermist. The raven, happily, was very much alive at The Turtle Back Zoo in West Orange, NJ. The vintage bird cage, which seems to be causing much tension between the fox and the raven, I photographed while visiting an antique shop. The young man (from by vintage photo collection) seems to be quite amused at the unfolding of the scene before him while the rabbits (from my travels) peek out curiously between the grasses. The crows (also from my travels) startle upward in the background as all await the winner of “A Battle of Wills”. Color, select filters and texture were added to complete the final piece.