Lens-Artists Challenge #290 – Circular Wonders

There is something particularly special and personal about the circle and how its curves comfortably rule every aspect of our lives.
― Kat Lahr

I spent a week in Nice and surrounding villages – and was greatly inspired by the art and architecture as well as the ongoing Carnivals. Last time we visited was in 1976…a long time ago. Honestly, I didn’t recognise anything at all, but loved what I saw. And the food was delicious.

A feast of colourful life filled our days. In fact I found so many lovely circular items, old and new, that I decided this challenge would be about Circular Wonders. For you to interpret the way you find most interesting!

This carnival in Nice is an old tradition. In 1294 it was first mentioned in writing, in 1873 it was the first carnival procession in France, and in 1876, flower floats were introduced. Today the Nice Carnival is the grandest and most important carnival (more than two weeks of festivities) in the Mediterranean area.

As the old towns and small towns here usually do, Saint Paul de Vence, Menton and Eze, offered lovely cobbled streets and wonderful art galleries, big and small. Fondation Maeght was impressive, and the Chagall museum in Nice was of course well worth a visit.

In my gallery below, the included Chagall is from his Bible series. Fête du Citron (with 140 tons of fruit used for uncountable circles…) in Menton had an Olympic theme. And every morning tables were beautifully laid on the beach – emanating strong spring vibes to a cold Swedish soul.

Wander into the center of the circle of wonder.

– Hongzhi Zhengjue

The next gallery is from the Opening Parade (this year the theme was Pop Culture) and the Flower Parade. Among the flower floats I recognised many fairy tale themes. When I said we were going to the ”Flower Parade”, an elderly French gentleman kindly corrected me – Bataille des Fleurs! Oh well, that sounded just perfect in French.

A circle is a round straight line with a hole in the middle.

– Mark Twain

Circles, half circles…skirts, dresses, hairdos, flowers, umbrellas, candy, and even a nose. Most impressive of these circular wonders, were the cycling musicians from the Netherlands – and they circled throughout the whole parade, lead by a biking conductor! There were all instruments from drums to trumpets and horns – and no one fell off his/her bike… some admirable skills there.

Come out of the circle of time

And into the circle of love.

– Rumi

Et voilá – I will end with some non-carnival flowers found in Nice, Menton and Eze. We had such a fun, lovely and uplifting week. And the icing on the cake was that –

Viveka (My Guilty Pleasures) and I chatted for a couple of hours and had a rosy drink while discussing the festivals and our outings around Nice. Unfortunately she had booked one week later than us, so this was only a short meet before we left.

Cheers!

Now we are looking forward to seeing your fantastic circles and half circles! Be sure to link to my original post and use the Lens-Artists tag. Hope you want to join in!

Big thanks to John, for last week’s brilliant lessons about tools of composition – inspirational posts en masse! Next week it is Patti’s turn to host, so please visit her beautiful site for more inspiration.

Thursday Thoughts – Nice again!

Do you love dragons?

Warning – I do and always have…So, the night light carnival was absolutely mezmerising. Ever since I first read about dragons, I have loved them. My daughter played with dragons and built dragons instead of dolls or cars. I still love animated movies with dragons in them. Spirited Away (Hayao Miyazaki on Japanese myths of old) and How to Train your Dragon (charming and clever), both have much to teach us. Fun, inspiration and wisdom in one. I hope to see them again with little Myra.

Time for the Light festival then. Promenade des Anglais looked wonderful in the sunset. But now – let’s get started!

The Carnival King arrived in confetti showers. At least 10-15 meters tall. Impressive.

Then another king came along – you all know who he is!

This car was obviously every year in the parade. I don’t recognise the animals or drivers. Do you?

Now – my dragons! Some skilled building here and I don’t want to know how many hours’ work. Look at the details. He walked, moved his body parts separately, sent flames and smoke, and juggled artists from his neck and head.

We climbed down the stairs to see him from ground level too. What a treat! My little grandchild looked at the movie clip I sent, and was at first a bit scared, then fascinated. I hope she will love dragons too. My fascination still burns. It is good to keep the child in you even as a grown up.

Thursday Thoughts – Carnaval de Nice

For the first time we were there – and we went four different carnival days. All thanks to Viveka of Myguiltypleasures, who is a true ambassador of this carnival. If you want to see more from Nice – please visit her fantastic blog.

Enjoy a gallery from the Opening Parade, with the theme: Roi de la Pop Culture. Starting and ending with some great stars!

More to come next week…

Happy Holidays!

I too will enjoy a couple of holiday weeks, and celebrate Christmas with my family. Thank you for your lovely company and support throughout this year, 2023, and I wish, from the depths of my heart, that 2024 will be a more peaceful and loving New Year for our world.

Lens-Artists Challenge #263 – Faces in a Crowd

John asks for faces in a crowd – not too easily done for a shy person like me. But, there are many alternatives for us too!

John points out that we might include examples from nature photography, pets, street photography, headshots, portraiture, fashion, sports, or wedding photography. And more.

To my surprise I found both old and new ones for this post. Here we go:

On Emma’s high school graduation day we finally spotted each other in the crowd!

Stockholm – at the market hall I spotted a happy young man running around with his sea creatures…

Jousting always gathers crowds of spectators, handsome horses and handsome men.

Good looking male lions…

Art… with legs, in Vilnius.

Mural art in Lodz, Poland.

Art in China – theatre and music along the Yangtse river.

Flower faces in Lund.

Animal faces – my Totti.

Strays in Thimpu, just outside our hotel. Very sweet and well behaved.

Lovely Bhutanese faces from the street, a famous traffic conductor and a family on pilgrimage.

– On their way to Tiger’s Nest.

Hungarian dolls in Budapest – faces in a crowd!

Your challenge this week is to share images featuring faces, in a crowd or standing alone, human or animal. Selfies are approved. We are looking forward to seeing your take on “Faces in the Crowd”. Don’t forget to link to John’s original post and be sure to tag your post with Lens-Artists.

Sincere thanks to Amy for her challenge last week, “Frame your Photos.” Next week, Sofia will be our host. If you’d like to participate but aren’t sure how to get started, click here.

Lens-Artists Challenge 255#- Telling a Story

This week, we’re focusing on telling a story with photos. Sometimes, if we’re lucky, we can convey a story in one image; other times we need several. For this challenge, there is a limit of 5 photos per story.

My two stories are both from last weekend. Midsummer Eve and Midsummer Day.

I believe they speak for themselves – without pictures of the young couple. Of all the games we played that day, the most precious one is catching the bridal bouquet. I don’t know about the custom in other countries, but in Sweden, catching it means you are the next one to get married!

Dancing around the maypole and playing games is always a treat for both young and old.

These pictures show Björnen sover, a singing game, used both as a round dance and a children’s song. The tune is a simplified version of the one used for Gubben Noak, published by Carl Michael Bellman, published in Songs of Fredman in 1792. According to Wikipedia, still today research hasn’t proved if Bellman wrote the tune or not. Since it became famous, the tune has been used for several different lyrics in the centuries since Bellman, including many children’s songs.

The game

  1. One person is appointed bear, taking cover and pretending to sleep (in the middle).
  2. Other participants walk around the ”bear” in a ring, singing Björnen sover (”the bear is sleeping”).
  3. At the end of the song, the bear ”wakes up”, and begins to chase the other participants.
  4. When someone is caught, he or she will become the ”bear” the next time. (as you can understand, in the end they will all be bears)

Because Russia and the USSR sometimes have been called the Russian Bear the term björnen sover (”the bear sleeps”) has in Swedish sometimes referred to times in international politics when Russia has attracted less attention, but not everyone is trusting them.

So, now it is your turn to tell a story in 1 to 5 photos. The story you tell is totally up to you. Document for example an event you liked, a meal you enjoyed or a visit to a favorite place. Share a photo that conveys an emotion, and show us a memory of a place, time or person. In your post, be sure to include the Lens-Artists tag and a link to Patti’s original post.

Last week Tina invited us to share photos of Spiritual Places. A special thanks to Tina for her inspiring theme, which generated your marvelous posts. I was especially touched by the images that honored Bren, a wonderful creative artist who recently died from cancer.

Now, a special announcement. We’re very pleased to tell you that once again 5 very talented photographers have accepted our invitation to host our July “Month of Guest Hosts” here at Lens-Artists. Be sure to visit their unique sites each week as they explore the following topics:

In August, the Lens-Artists team will be back.  I, Ann-Christine, will be your host on Saturday, August 5. Look for my post on Leya at noon ET.  And by then, this hectic time will be over and I am free to do some inspired blogging again. In the meantime, I am hoping that your July is relaxing and filled with inspiration for the July topics!

Interested in joining the Lens-Artists challenge? Click here for more information.

Thursday Thoughts – Christmas in Copenhagen

With the winter solstice, and these festive images, I want to thank you all for another year of sharing thoughts and musings! I am so happy and grateful that we have met and keep meeting here on WP. I hope to see you soon again…keep blogging!

Come join me on a Tivoli walk – and get some Christmas feeling!

They have everything here, theatre, music and dancing…

Play of water to Wiener music…

Nice people, good food and warm drinks…

And some Christmas trees!

I wish you all a Wonderful Holiday Season and a Happy, Healthy New Year!

Thursday Thoughts – Outing on Mother’s Day

This year the sun was shining and we spent a fine day together. Biking to a local greenhouse with an amazing bloom of cacti and geraniums. And millions of tadpoles – and a leech. I do love tadpoles, we always let some grow up in a big bowl, and then let them out when all four legs had arrived. A nature’s wonder. Leeches though…naaah. Not one of my favourites…

Thursday Thoughts – Ready for Lift-Off?

Goodbye 2020 – Happy New Year!

Thank you All in the blogosphere for helping us stay reasonably sane this year ♥ We made it so far, and I believe there is a light in the tunnel for 2021. Take good care of yourselves and each other – hope to see you soon again! – Ann-Christine

Mother – Forever in My Heart

Early this morning, my mother unexpectedly passed away. This is the last photo, from August when we celebrated Emma turning 30. In the header, June this summer, Mother turned 85. Always a beauty, always shining, always funny, always – Always Mum.

Thank you for Everything. You chose such a beautiful day to leave us, warm and sunny, I believe the last day of summer. A day of no wind, of stillness and the yellow garden flowers glowing. But nothing can ever glow like You.

How frail is a life – yours went from laughing and joking on Monday, to gone forever Wednesday morning. Wherever you are now, I know your company is smiling.