Art, Books, Winter

Some Thoughts on Shadows

88 Comments

In Maine, we have moved from deep winter to late winter and will soon be approaching the purgatory that is mid-March. But we still have a few weeks to go until purgatory, and in the meantime winter reigns, that time of shadows on the snow. How I love to see the shadows in our backyard.

The way the slats from the fence register on the snow,

the way the blue shadows stripe the yard,

and the way the dark shadows fill the woods.

Such a beautiful season, and even though staying warm is expensive, I never wish for winter to hurry into spring. Each year, I  welcome winter with a glad heart and am always renewed by this still, cold season that encourages a person to turn inward.

While we don’t want to turn inward indefinitely—we need spring and the exuberant return to life—winter, for me at least, is a necessary time to examine personal shadows and try to come to terms with them.

If this sounds very Jungian, well, it is. Years ago, I blasted through the books of the late, great Canadian writer Robertson Davies, who was a great admirer of Carl Jung, author and psychiatrist, among other things. If I remember correctly, Davies maintained that Jung, with his emphasis on the unconscious, was the patron saint of artists, all of whom, one way or another, dig deep into the unconsciousness to produce art. The deeper the dive, the greater the art. (By art, I mean art in general, which includes literature, dance, music, theater, and, yes, movies.)

Therefore, as I am surrounded by the shadows of winter, I settle in to read and think and write.

Spring will come soon enough.

********************************************************************

Listening

Bob Dylan: “A Hard Rain’s A-Gonna Fall

Bob Dylan, a musician who has been much in the news because of the bio pic A Complete Unknown, certainly dug deep to write his songs. “A Hard Rain’s A-Gonna Fall” beautifully illustrates this.

88 thoughts on “Some Thoughts on Shadows”

  1. When I was teaching, an architecture professor came as a guest speaker. He had taken photos from the same spot eight days in a row. The first seven days were cloudy or rainy. On the 8th day the sun came out. The flat, black and white of winter became three dimensional as the sunlight made shadows that gave depth to the same image. From then on, I have appreciated every day when the sun and shadows give depth to the woods around me. You photos are great examples.

    2. Oh, yes, the dirty snow banks. We actually started the year with a blizzard that produced 11 inches of snow in 24 hours, followed by weeks of deep freeze weather. That snow-plowed snow quickly turned to mounds of ice. It took a month to melt away. It is such an antithesis of the beauty of the first-fallen snow!

  3. I haven’t though of Davies in years! I have not read all of his work by far.
    I have always welcomed a cherished the blue shadows of February snow, and really miss them down here. I used to think everyone noticed them until art school where often no one else noticed them. Here in the now late afternoon the shadows are long and have a greenish cast against the brown grass of the snowless field.

  4. Oh! I have long appreciated Jung. One of my best friends lived and studied at the Jung Institute for an academic year eons ago. One of my supervisors in grad school as a Jungian analyst which turned out to be an amazing experience. After I graduated the practice where he worked offered me a position. A while afterward he moved and essentially gave me is practice, a huge boon for a young clinician, although it turned out I was less Jungian than I thought.

  5. I, too, love the long blue shadows of winter, esp. lovely just after sunrise or before sunset when you get golden light burnishing the trees. ❄️💙

  6. As I looked at the photos, before I got to the text about Jung and art, I said to myself (re the photos) that you have the eye of an artist. Noticing shadows and negative space–that’s not something everyone does, or appreciates! Guess what? I’m starting to work my way back into my blog! Stay tuned….

    1. Thank you so very much! What a wonderful compliment. Also thrilled to read you are starting to work your way back to your blog. I am coming to believe that our creative endeavors are a form of resistance.

  9. I do love shadow play on the snow and you’ve captured some good ones, Laurie. However, I’m chomping at the bit for spring (and my Maryland winter is nothing like Maine). It’s a good thing you’re there and I’m here. In part, i think it is because i was raised in Florida) I have snowdrops and snow crocuses just starting to bloom and they do lift my winter weary soul!

  10. I’ve read that Dylan wrote only a handful of songs before arriving in The Big Apple in 1961. NYC inspired him incredibly, because he wrote like crazy there, soon turning out Blowing In The Wind and many others.

  11. Laurie, you voice my feelings about winter so very well. It’s such a beautiful time of year, and offers a quieter time for peaceful pleasures. Your pics are perfect.

  17. Lovely to listen to Bob Dylan again 🙂 We are beginning to see subtle signs of the summer drawing to a close – not that our winters get anywhere near as cold as yours do!

  18. Taking time out to pause and observe the simple beauty of life I discovered helps resets the mind as we seek peace within.

    The shadows on the snow is a great example of symbolism. Thank you for the reminder 🙂

  19. Lovely to see these photos, Laurie. Have you come across a book called Wintering by Katherine May? It’s a sort of meditation on learning to love winter and the benefits of the fallow season. I’ve yet to read it myself but it often crops up in book recommendations. You might find it of interest, if you haven’t come across it before.

    1. I read ‘Wintering’ recently and enjoyed it. I think it was recommended on someone’s blog so i got it from the Library. It is one of those books which is hard to describe – a short autobiographical piece without dates or timeline about a time of tribulation and its resolution. Very gentle and positive.

      2. Hurray for libraries! I go into mine so regularly i don’t need my card now – they know my name and find me on the computer that way !

    2. Glad you liked the pictures of shadows on snow. I have indeed heard of Wintering and as I am a lover of winter, I read the book when it first came out and thought it was spot on.

  20. I am finding that as I get older I appreciate all the seasons more and the cyclical nature of the year. I feel the shifts in energy and the move from inwards to outwards more strongly.

    1. Thanks, Derrick! Davies is worth revisiting, particularly The Manticore, where most of story involves the protagonist as he undergoes Jungian analysis. Fascinating and unique!

  23. Hello to all,

    beautiful pictures of the snow. I so miss the snow and all the winter months although, I have now been in FL many years. I also am a follower of Jung and can feel his creative genius with you Laurie! Blessings I send your way. Thank you.

  24. Dear Laurie
    C.G. Jung was an artist himself. His art, mostly mandalas, is published in his Red Notebook.
    We love winter as well. We go north every year to experience a real winter. We are of Scandinavian origin but living in East Anglia. Years ago, we lived not far from you in Vermont and loved the winter there.
    All the best
    The Fab Four of Cley
    🙂 🙂 🙂 🙂

    1. Not surprising that Jung himself was an artist Makes perfect sense. Although I have never been to Scandinavia, I know I would love it. Scandinavia is a kind of spiritual homeland for those of us who cherish winter.

  25. I love the down time of winter as well, but this is the time of year I am itching for spring; it will be a while yet, but the sap is running and that is a good sign.
    Shadows on snow have been catching my eye as well, especially in late afternoon when the shadows are so very long.
    Almost 6 pm last night and it was twilight. I’ll take the returning sun!

  27. Having been raised in Northern Michigan, purgatory is a good word for March; it could mean that we would have another foot or so of snow or we could have no snow and sun. Absolutely love Bob Dylan

  28. Laurie, it sounds to me as if you’re settled into the perfect part of this country, with your love of cold and winter! I enjoy seeing your photos — those shadows are spectacular — but in my heart of hearts, I long for spring and its warmth and rebirth! And frankly, it just can’t come soon enough, after the wicked winter we’ve had here.

  29. Beautiful photographs Laurie! I love the shadows in Winter and the wonderful quiet times this season brings 💜 xxx

  30. Those shadows are simply beautiful!I have to make a concentrated effort to welcome and celebrate every season but,spending so much time outside, I often catch myself grumbling – too hot, too cold, too wet, too dry… It is not my best quality 😁

  32. Angled winter light, shadows in the woods, and a time for introspection. That is a beautiful description of winter in the northeast, Laurie.

    I remember that Bob Dylan song.

  33. No beautiful shadows on snow for us, but your post did lead me to think about our long, hot summers: especially how the harsh sunlight and absence of shadows are part of what makes the season seem so difficult at times. Light and shadow belong together, and when they’re well balanced, as in your photos, it seems to evoke a sense of well-being, regardless of the season.

    Your shadows also evoked one of my favorite childhood poems. A fascination with shadows never has left me — or you, it seems.

    1. I have always loved that poem! Thanks so much for linking to it. Harsh sun without shadows sounds draining. I guess every place has its climate challenges. Ours, as mentioned in my post, is the purgatory that is March.

  36. A lovely introspective post, Laurie. Beautiful shadows, which means the sun is shining – a gift in winter. It’s the time of year when I slow down and tend to spend more time being inwardly creative. Happy March. ❤

  37. Every season has a reason. I too enjoy winter, it gives me lots of energy. Somehow it is easier to focus on things during the winter, when it is warm outside my mind wanders off far more often.

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  39. Nice shadows but you and I are polar opposites. I could never wait to get out of winter, but I did enjoy listening to Dylan again. I had that album in my collection, once upon a time. Have a good week!

    1. When it come to winter, I’m a true-blue Mainer. 😉 Fortunately, there are plenty of warm places for those who aren’t as enthusiastic about snow. Bob Dylan still sounds fresh to me, even after all the years that have passed since that album was released.

  40. I also like winter and its invitation to slow down and reflect, though confronting my shadows is not necessarily a favorite task. I often think that I spend too much time in my head already and have a tendency to overthink; too much of that is likely not helpful.

    I had to think of you and your movie recommendation last night when “Flow” won an Academy Award for Best Animated Film. 😊

    1. Oh, how fun! Some Maners dislike the dark and cold of February, but most dread March the way they dread root canal. Right now in Maine, the landscape is hideous. After taking pictures of Snow-Gauge Clif, I will try to include photos of our dirty snow banks.

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