This program will explore the beauty of imperfect and/or unconventional subjects. As nature photographers we often seek out the flowers, leaves and such that are not perfect, but rather have /character/, the double headed flower, the decaying fall leaves, the deformed coneflower that stands out as flawed and hence different and beautiful. This program will also explore the concept of slowing down and appreciating the beauty of everyday life, things that might be overlooked.
As purveyors of rust and decay we appreciate the perseverance and beauty of “life after humans” as cars and equipment falls apart and succumbs to oxidation and decay. Wabi-Sabi teaches us to find beauty in everyday life. It is a kind of anti-aesthetic, an alternative to the dominating discriminatory ideas we hold about beauty. “Wabi means a beauty of elegant imperfection. Sabi means aloneness. Together, they suggest the beauty of ‘the withered, weathered, tarnished, scarred, intimate, coarse, earthly, evanescent, tentative, ephemeral.’ ~ Crispin Sartwell, Six Names of Beauty. It is a way of honoring that everything is impermanent, and we are always in a state of both becoming and falling away. It is used to describe a particular philosophy that beauty can be found in the old, the everyday, the imperfect. Wabi Sabi applies to more than nature and the seasons of change and decay, but it also to the “Life after Humans” arena or UrbEx (urban exploration). As a side note, the term Wabi Sabi can also be part of the social movement of embracing imperfection of your physical traits as a human being, especially with respect to self-perception and celebrating imperfection in a society that encourages people to be perfect and pressures people to be flawless.
About Lisa & Tom Cuchara
We are passionate about our photography (we even met in a camera club). We have presented programs at NHCC, NECCC, Greater Lynn, PSA, and to various other camera and nature clubs across the New England region. We also judge photographic competitions, teach various photo and photoshop workshops, have had several successful gallery exhibitions of their work, had photographs in Adirondack Life, Birder’s World, Wild Bird, the WCC wolf calendar and on the cover of paperback novel. We love any chance to take pictures. We appreciate the world around us and embrace the challenge of interpreting what our eyes and heart see via the camera lens. Nature photography (birds, landscapes, flowers) gives us a chance to appreciate the “everyday miracles” that surround us. We also love the challenge of photographing people, babies, weddings, etc. We feel honored when we are photographing a wedding – privileged to be witnessing such a sacred moment in the lives of two people. We can be reached via email: BREAphotos@comcast.net