Let’s Face It!

by

161214-nigel-7_kl

What do you see? Is this the picture of a traditional North Norfolk fisherman?
Let’s face it, we can’t help but to see guided by our ideas. What a failure of mother nature that we can’t watch us seeing. We are uncontrollably projecting. All the pictures we have ever perceived form our perception without us noticing. So we don’t see the “real” face but a comfortabe idea triggered by this picture – it’s more like dreaming.

It’s a picture in shades of grey. Black and white and all the shades inbetween radiate an abstract quality. If you steal colour from the nature it makes the observer’s mind concentrate on the structures and the essence of the object. It produces a distance, which is the basis of perceiving art. At the same time the picture is getting more honest, it presents itself an easthetical object, which doesn’t pretend being a pure image of nature. The eye of the perceiver is drawn to the fine beard as well as to the lighter shades of grey of the face. These shades of grey produce the magnetism and magic of this picture.

Like every photographer our beloved Dina produced a picture which shows a nearly archetypal idea of the prominent and beautiful face. And you, the beholders, see following your conventions of seeing the type of the lusty Norfolk fisherman. Shades of grey produce types but not real folks.

Faces are magical. They can even be dangerous. To look at Medusa’s face made people solidify into stone. Fortunately she was mortal, so she is long dead, we suppose. We expect that faces show the identity of a person, that they tell a story, but in a picture they freeze into a document of the intended by the artist.

After all these reflections would you like to read the answer of the first question?
This is our friend Nigel, an intellectual cabinetmaker.

***

Was meint ihr zu sehen? Das Bild eines Fischers in North Norfolk?
Let’s face it, ihr könnt gar nicht anders, als geleitet durch eure Meinung wahrzunehmen. Welches Versagen von Mutter Natur, dass wir uns nicht selbst beim Sehen zuschauen können! Wir sehen frech unsere Vorstellungen in ein Gesicht hinein. Uns umgebenen Bilderwelten prägen unsere Erwartungen eh wir es bemerken, so dass wir nicht das eigentliche Gesicht sehen, sondern eine uns genehme Vorstellung – eigentlich eine Schimäre.

Das Bild ist in Grautönen gestaltet. Schwarz, Weiß und den Töne dazwischen wohnt etwas Abstraktes inne. Man nimmt der Natur die Farbe, dadurch wird sie zwar unnatürlich, jedoch der Geist des Betrachters wird mehr auf die Strukturen und das Wesen des Dargestellten gestoßen. Er gewinnt Distanz, die die Grundlage jeder Kunstbetrachtung darstellt. Außerdem wird das Bild ehrlicher, es wird zu einem ästhetischen Objekt, das sich gar nicht erst als getreues Abbild der Natur gebärdet. Der feine Bart wie auch das helle Gesicht zieht den Blick magnetisch an. Die Grautonabstufungen schaffen diese Magie.

Unsere liebe Dina schuf wie jeder Fotograf ein Bild, das fast archetypische Vorstellungen vom markanten und schönen Gesicht darstellt. Ihr als Betrachter fallt darauf herein, indem ihr gemäß eurer Sehkonventionen den Typus des kernigen Norfolk Fischers seht. Grautöne typisieren.

Gesichter sind magisch. Als solches können sie sogar gefährlich sein. Das Antlitz der Medusa, die Tochter der Meeesgottheiten, ließ Menschen zu Stein erstarren. Zum Glück war sie sterblich und kann als verstorben gelten.
Gesichter sprechen uns als Spiegel der Identität an. Sie erzählen eine Geschichte, aber werden sie nicht erstarrt zu einem Dokument des Intendierten?

Nach all dem Klügeln, wollt ihr nun des Rätsels Lösung?
Es handelt sich um unseren Freund Nigel, einem intellektuellen Schreiner.

Take care
Macht’s gut
The Fab Four of Cley
.

.

© Text and illustrations, Hanne Siebers and Klausbernd Vollmar,  Cley next the Sea, 2016

Follow Dina- Hanne Siebers on Instagram!

 

394 thoughts

  1. ……….. in der Tat, uns Menschen kann man mit Fotos schon etwas vorgaukeln!
    Man interpretiert oft das hinein, was man selber so gerne sehen möchte. Enttäuschung vorprogrammiert!
    Das Foto ist einsame Spitze, aber wie könnte es bei Dina anders sein..!
    Es ist aber auch ein äußerst attraktiver Schreiner! Meiner sieht ganz anders aus…..!!!!
    Liebe Grüsse Laura

    Liked by 7 people

    Reply

    • Guten Tag, liebe Laura,
      tja, vielleicht solltest du deinen Schreiner wechseln 😉
      Irgendwie findet bei Portraits eine doppelte Verfremdung statt
      1. was die Fotografin in das Antlitz hineinsieht
      2. was der Betrachter dann auf das Bild projiziert
      Man könnte von doppelter Verfremdung sprechen. Aber Verfremdung sollte man nicht verachten, sie verdeutlicht oft. Im ganz anderen Bereich des Theaters setzte Bert Brecht seinen V-Effekt (Verfremdung) ein und erstaunlicherweise war er auch dort wie in der Fotografie mit der Typisierung verbunden.
      Danke dir fürs Kommentieren. Habe ein feines Wochenende
      The Fab Four of Cley

      Liked by 4 people

    • Hallihallo, hier schreiben die liebklugen Buchfeen Siri und Selma
      wir sind gerade aus der Feenschule heimgeflattert gekommen und haben gleich aufgeregt die Kommentare gelesen. Dein lieber Kommentar hat uns angeregt, darüber nachzudenken, was eigentlich Wirklichkeit ist. Wir sind auf nichts anderes gekommen, als zu sagen: Wirklichkeit ist das, was wir sehen. Und so scheint ein Objekt so viele Wirklichkeiten wie Betrachter zu haben – oder?
      Ganz viel güldnen Feenhauch von
      Siri 🙂 und 🙂 Selma

      Liked by 5 people

  3. What a wonderful character, interesting face and awesome portrait! Dina’s progress with portraits is more than amazing!
    Well done, all of you. You could have cheated me …
    Snowy greetings from the north of Sweden,
    Annalena x

    Liked by 7 people

    Reply

  4. Prejudice (assumption) is a dangerous field indeed. I didn’t think of a fisherman; first I thought of a street bum but Nigel is too clean for that. A fisherman could be but traditional fishermen I know do all have more lines in their faces. I wouldn’t have thought of a cabinet maker on first sight but now you mention it. Great Portrait!!! Love it.

    Greetings from Napier in South Africa,

    Herman

    Liked by 6 people

    Reply

    • Good afternoon, dear Herman,
      Prejustices – that’s a complicated matter. We suppose we cannot perceive without them. These learned assumptions make perceiving possible, they give a structure to impulses that come in from an object. Unfortunately we are quite often not aware of our prejustices. But we think it is basic being aware of those prejustices for the reason of producing an artefact – a picture f.e. – and for political/social reasons as well. We suppose that it is characteristic for populism not to reflect about how our perception is led by prejustice.
      In a portrait prejustice works twice
      1. the prejustice of the photographer
      2. the prejustice when perceiving the picture
      So one could say every picture is highly ideological. There is no way out, but it’s important that the producer as well as the observer are aware of it.
      Thanks for commenting.
      We wish you a happy weekend
      The Fab Four of Cley

      Liked by 2 people

  5. Nigel must be very happy with his portrait, Dina, this is so good, real magic!!
    I’m so happy for you having snow at last. Dina will get lots and lots when she is back in Fredrikstad soon. 🙂
    Jon Olav is on the Christian Radich sailing the tall ship around the Canary isles at the moment.
    See you soon!
    Hugs and kisses from
    Tone og gutta xo

    Liked by 5 people

    Reply

    • Dear Tonera,
      we were soooooooooo happy having had snow in the morning.It was all beautifully white, but,oh dear, it’s all melted away already.What a pity!
      We love Nigel, he is so kind and works in a great shed full of mysteries.
      Fairy dust from
      Siri 🙂 and 🙂 Selma

      Liked by 2 people

    • Good afternoon, dear Tone,
      shall we tell you a secret?
      Nigel hasn’t seen his portrait yet. He wasn’t interested in seeing it. But tomorrow he has no way to escape, we bring him sweets we baked today and show him his portrait. We know he will love it.
      Wishing you a GREAT weekend.
      Lots of love
      The Fab Four of Cley

      Liked by 1 person

  11. Hi Ihr Lieben, was für ein beeindruckendes Bild und welche kluge Gedanken zu dem Antlitz! (ich finde das Wort Antlitz gerade bei diesem Bild sehr treffend, das, was einem entgegenblickt ist zumeist mit uns selbst und unseren Vorstellungen verbunden.) Ich, als bekennender Schwarzwälder Bub (na ja mit dem Bub ist es nicht mehr so weit her ;-)), könnte ohne weiteres auch einen gestandenen Schwarzwälder Bauern darin erkennen. Egal, es ist ein sehr ausdrucksstarkes Gesicht, das Dina wunderbar umgesetzt hat. Gratulation!

    Liked by 6 people

    Reply

    • Lieber Konrad,
      habe gaaaanz herzlichen Dank für dein Lob, das uns sehr gut tut – doch noch ziemlich narzisstisch 😉
      Du hast Recht, das altehrwürdige Wort ‘Antlitz’ passt hier bestens. Wenn wir uns recht erinnern, ist das ein uraltes Wort, das es bereits im Althochdeutschen und Mittelhochdeutschen gab, so etwa in der Bedeutung von “Gesicht” und “sehen”.
      Wir hatten heute Morgen für etwas über eine halbe Stunde schönsten Schnee, aber nun scheint schon wieder die doofe Sonne, die alles wegtaute.
      Wir wünschen dir und Astrid ein wunderschönes Wochenende.
      Macht’s gut
      The Fab Four of Cley

      Liked by 1 person

    • Thank you very much.
      Yes, we like Nigel very much 🙂 We suppose you need to have a close connection to the object your photographing to produce an impressive picture.
      We wish you an easy and relaxed weekend
      The Fab Four of Cley

      Like

  14. Ihr Lieben, ein feines Beispiel für unsere menschliche Wahrnehmung, denn wir sehen ja nicht nur, was wir sehen können oder wollen, wir hören und lesen auch so. Mir scheint, als ob nur die körperliche Wahrnehmung, wie Herzklopfen, warmes oder kribbeliges Gefühl im Leib, zusammenziehen, weit werden etc. eine ungefiltertere und damit wahrhaftigere Seite ist.
    Herzliche Grüsse vom weissen Berg mit teilweise Sonnenschein,
    Ulli

    Liked by 5 people

    Reply

    • tzzz … ich vergass etwas zu dem wunderbaren Porträtfoto von dir, liebe Hanne, zu schreiben. Ich finde ja, dass sich für Porträts immer noch schwarz-weiss am besten eignet, weil es die Eigenschaften ohne farbliche Ablenkung wunderbar herausstreicht. An einen Fischer habe ich allerdings nicht gedacht, er an einen “Wäldler” 😉
      habt einen feinen Tag

      Liked by 3 people

    • Guten Tag, liebe Ulli,
      wir denken, jede Art von Wahrnehmung ist ideologisch, auch die Körperwahrnehmung, denn wir können ein und dasselbe Körpergefühl z.B. als harmlos oder Krankheitssymptom erleben. Anders gesagt, Wahrnehmung kann nicht ohne Interpretation stattfinden, da diese den wahrgenommenen Impulsen erst eine Ordnung verleiht und somit sinnstiftend ist. Hmmm, so sehen wir das. Welcher Ideologie wir dabei zuneigen, sollte uns bewusst sein, sind wir es nicht oder weigern wir uns gar, darüber zu reflektieren, führt das unweigerlich zu einem simplizistischen Populismus.
      Das ist so in etwa unsere Auffassung von Wahrnehmung.
      Mit ganz lieben Grüßen vom stürmischen Meer zum Berg
      The Fab Four of Cley

      Liked by 1 person

  16. A portrait that could have been taken at almost any time since cameras originated, so we can add ‘timeless’ to the obvious qualities too.
    Your words about perception and conditioning are wise also. We have all grown up in a world saturated with imagery and stereotypes, so it is understandable when assumptions about trade or circumstances are made from looking at images.

    After all, looking at my own photo, one might assume that I am an elderly ex-Londoner who is often given to fits of grumpiness… 🙂

    Your combination of photos and wisdom is as always, faultless.
    Love from Beetley, (In the heavy snow that I don’t like!) Pete and Ollie. X

    Liked by 8 people

    Reply

    • Dear Tish,
      all the best for New Year to you as well 🙂
      If we wouldn’t tell us stories all the time, we couldn’t make any sense of our life and our perceptions. But it seems important for us to become aware of the structures or ideology of our stories.
      Thanks for commenting and a happy weekend
      The Fab Four of Cley

      Liked by 1 person

  19. My dear friends,
    I love this monochrome portrait of Nigel for all the reasons you mention. You have captured his spirit. I equally appreciate your mindful thoughts that make me reflect about my own method of seeing.
    Have a wonderful day!
    Hugs
    Per Magnus

    Liked by 7 people

    Reply

    • Hi, dear Richard,
      our dear Master told us that it was John Berger who started the interest in Walter Benjamin in the English speaking countries. Berger repeated the theories of the Frankfurt School of Philosophy about perception, the Prague School of early structuralism and some of Goethe’s ideas about perception. A mixture we really like and which inspires us in our way to see pictures.
      Thanks and fairy dust
      Siri 🙂 and 🙂 Selma, the happy Bookfayries

      Liked by 2 people

    • Hi, dear Richard,
      thanks a lot for commenting 🙂
      We will have a look again at Berger’s BBC film about perception. First we thought we’ll blog about him, but we have to serve a German speaking as well as an English speaking public and for our German speaking visitors Berger isn’t that known because Walter Benjamin, Marcuse and Adorno’s writing about aethetics say more or less the same.
      Happy weekend
      The Fab Four of Cley

      Like

  21. I saw the sparkle of from the eyes first, bright, intelligent, vibrant and fulll of life and interest in all around. Also kindness and some sorrow perhaps. A great photo of Nigel and interesting reflections on colour and b/w photographs. The former are too easy at times, the latter requiring our input, focussing the vision more on the object, highlighting certain aspects.

    Liked by 8 people

    Reply

    • Dear Annika,
      we love b/w photography with its fine shades of grey. Actually we love most of the grey shades, especially the lighter ones.
      Thanks for commenting and liking our post. Have a happy weekend
      The Fab Four of Cley

      Liked by 1 person

  22. Danke für das wundervolle Bild und den feinen Text in zwei Sprachen. Jag uppskattar särskilt de där texterna eftersom deras läsningar tränar mig mycket. Ich liebe Eure Inhalte. Herzliche Grüsse Ruth

    Liked by 5 people

    Reply

  26. Fab Four of Cley,
    As always, Dina has given us an image that does not soon fade from the mind. The black/white quality gives the subject a more sincere character. {IMO} I believe the eyes are truly the windows to the soul and this picture captured his soul at that very moment, and your friend Nigel appears to have quite a bit of character.
    Have a wonderful weekend, my friends.
    GP Cox

    Liked by 5 people

    Reply

    • Good afternoon, dear GP Cox
      we love b/w portraits, as Pete wrote before, they give the picture a timeless quality. And in a way this picture is timeless. If you would see this picture without knowing when it was taken, it’s hard to say if it’s 19th, 20th or 21st century f.e. or even earlier.
      Thank you for your commentary.
      We wish our dear friend a relaxed and happy weekend
      The Fab Four of Cley

      Liked by 1 person

  27. Haha, reingefallen..er ist gar kein Fischer?! Ein intellektueller Schreiner, der auch mal zum Fischen geht…
    Schicker Pulli und tolle Mütze!
    Ich muss viel an Picasso denken, der ja Augen überall hin malte.
    Danke, dass ihr mir so viel geholfen habt, meine “Wahrnehmung” zu überprüfen…aber manchmal ist es auch schwer mit Menschen zu diskutieren, die nur an das “Glauben, was sie sehen können”…wenn wir doch so leicht Täuschungen unterliegen können…
    Es könnte sein, dass ich mich irre, wenigstens das versuche ich zu beachten….es hilft…man bleibt flexibel.
    Liebste Grüße, sich selbst beim Sehen beobachten, das braucht schon einiges an Wachheit.
    Schöner Post, sieht sympathisch aus euer Freund. Leuchtende Augen. Den klügelnden Text finde ich sehr interessant.
    Weiter geht es mit der Tanzerei vor dem Spiegel…Tschühüß

    Liked by 6 people

    Reply

    • Weißt du was wir klugen Buchfeen glauben?
      Alles ist Täuschung. Schlimm ist nur Täuschung mit Realität zu verwechseln, denn Realität ist Täuschung, aber das schrieben wir ja gerade.
      Liebsten Feenstaub von
      Siri 🙂 und 🙂 Selma

      Liked by 2 people

    • Liebe Pia,
      da kann ich mich nur unseren klugen Buchfeen anschließen – alles ist Täuschung oder wie bereits Calderon de la Barca im Barock meinte “das Leben ist ein Traum”.
      Vom wild stürmischen Meer die liebsten Grüße und besten Wünsche für ein feines Wochenende
      Klausbernd

      Like

    • Siri und Selma, das muss Nigel ja nie erfahren, aber meine Mutti würde sich wahrscheinlich so den lieben Gott vorstellen….
      Mich erinnert er ein wenig an den Vater der Kelly Family, aber das ist mein Problem und das soll Nigel auch nie erfahren, bitte….
      Ansonsten wird dieses Wochenende einfach wundervoll werden, es ist eine Freude….
      Täuschen, Ent-Täuschen

      ..gerade lese ich “Der Geist der Bäume, eine ganzheitliche Sicht ihres unerkannten Wesens”, also ich packe es jetzt aus, bin schon gespannt…
      Meine Schülerin Anja war mal mit dem Hirschhausen für eine Fernsehsendung eine Nacht im Wald bei einem Mann, der schon 3 Jahre im Odenwald in einem Zelt lebt.
      Beim Abschied fragte der Hirschhausen: Und wäre das ein Leben für euch hier im Wald?
      Es wurde eher verneint…aber Anja meinte: Vielleicht sind wir nur noch nicht so weit…
      Alles Täuschung, merke ich mir mal…
      Viel Liebe und ganz viel Aloha und Mahalo von Pia

      Liked by 2 people

    • Liebe ❤️ Pia
      Da brauchen wir Nachhilfeunterricht bitte, wer ist denn die Kelly family?
      Siri und Selma haben ja doch deinen Kommentar gelesen. Sie meinen jedoch, Mister Gott habe einen weißen Bart und sei immer so im Nachthemdstil gekleidet.
      Gaaaaaanz liebe ❤️ Grüße
      💃👭🚶

      Liked by 1 person

    • Die Kelly Family geben wieder Konzerte in Dortmund, aber die Karten waren wohl gestern innerhalb weniger Minuten ausverkauft…
      Am 22.12. bekam ich eine sms einer unbekannten Nummer: Wie geht es dir und deiner Mutter lg Maite, ich kenne gar keine Maite….
      24.12. wieder sms von Maite, schönes Gedicht über eine Kerze, die man anzünden kann (auch wenn sie dann irgendwann verbrannt ist) anstatt sie in der Schublade liegen zu lassen….das heißt bei den Psychologen Synchronizität, das habe ich verstanden…..
      Na, das mache ich doch gerne, wenn Siri und Selma von mir Nachhilfe brauchen….

      Immer wenn du glaubst, jetzt hast du etwas verstanden, kommt von irgendwo her eine neue Täuschung, ein neues Rätsel, finde ich…
      Ist denn der Nigel wenigstens ein echter Schreiner, come on, fab 4, enttäuscht mich nicht!!
      Falls der mal den Odenwald besuchen möchte, wir könnten eine neue Küche gebrauchen und ein paar schöne Regalbretter, die Wände sind schief, deshalb ist das nicht so einfach….

      Liked by 2 people

  30. This is a stunning portrait of Nigel, Dina-Hanne!
    I recently read that the way women look at things may differ significantly from how men see. Women and men look at faces and absorb visual information in different ways. Apparently women look more at the left-hand side of faces and have a strong left eye bias and also explore the face much more than men.

    Liked by 4 people

    Reply

  31. Our minds, as humans, are so drawn toward developing an understanding, to make sense of what is presented to us that we far too often jump to conclusions without absorbing the details of an image that can’t be painted with a brush stroke or captured with the lens of a camera. It can’t be inferred, guessed, or deduced through logical reasoning. It can only be absorbed through interaction, communication, and a genuine interest in understanding the truth instead of our ego’s desire to project it.

    We are certainly all shaped by our life experiences. But, it’s by remaining aware of this human behavior that we can take pause and dive beneath the surface to come ever closer to the truth. This photo and post was one of those experiences, thank you for sharing.

    Liked by 4 people

    Reply

    • Dear Dave
      On one hand we agree with your comment, on the other hand we ask ourselves what is the truth you quote. There is surely not THE truth, truth is as ideologically a concept as seeing an object is – well, at least we think this. And you are absolutely right without ideology there is no making sense. And we suppose there are as many truths as people.
      Thank you very much for your insprations.
      We wish you a happy weekend
      The Fab Four of Cley

      Liked by 2 people

    • Perhaps you are correct, and the only conceivable truth is that there is no universal truth.

      But, I suppose that my perhaps shallower definition of truth entails being open to all the world presents to us – viewpoints and perspectives that may run counter to our past – without allowing our own experiences to cloud the telling of another’s individual story.

      Through this definition of understanding another person’s truth, each of us can learn and grow in ways that would be impossible to achieve on our own.

      Thanks for your thought-provoking response, and best wishes for a wonderful weekend!

      Liked by 3 people

    • Dear Dave,
      thanks for answering. I agree with your point. In a way the question of truth is not so much a theoretical one but one about what to do. And this points in your way of thinking: the priority of the reflexion of truth should be to change old unreflected patterns of thinking or second and third hand thinking.
      Cheers
      Klausbernd

      Liked by 2 people

    • We don’t tell the colour of his eyes. It’s our secret – and you know, art needs secrets. We suppose everyone seeing this picture has an idea about the colour of Nigel’s eyes. And this makes b/w pictures so interesting, you have to guess, to substitute colour. Perceiving become action.
      Thank you very much for commenting.
      Wishing you a happy weekend
      The Fab Four of Cley

      Liked by 4 people

  39. A wonderful photo that captures a face full of life. You are right about the brain making decisions, I immediately thought fisherman but the face also fits an intellectual cabinet maker 🙂

    Liked by 5 people

    Reply

    • Dear Pit
      We had fine sunshine ☀️ 🌞 today and had a look 👀 at this very high flood 🌊🌊🌊 today. Because of the strong northern winds last night on flood came in on top of other which was kept in by the gail. But no damage was done ✅ but some roads and streets were high under water 💦 but everyone had their floodgates out – just a routine.
      We wish you and Mary an easy weekend
      💃👭🚶

      Liked by 2 people

    • Hello Klausbernd,
      I hope you didn’t get your feet wet! Siri and Selma are in a better position than you as they can fly! 😉
      Have a great Sunday, and my regards to the other 3/4 of the Fab Four,
      Pit

      Liked by 1 person

    • Good evening, dear Helen,
      that’s our little contribution of fighting against populism to make our readers think. And not only this but also showing them that autonomous thinking is fun.
      With greetings from the little village next the big sea
      The Fab Four of Cley

      Liked by 4 people

  53. What a great portrait, Dina.
    Such warm friendly eyes betray a character full of charm (and probably mirth).

    (I had trouble opening this image. Not sure why as I’ve always been able to see your photos as soon as I open the post).

    Liked by 4 people

    Reply

    • Dear Vicki
      We have no idea what the problem could have been. But fortunately could see it in the end.
      We are happy 😊 that you like this portrait of our friend.
      We wish you a relaxing 😎 weekend
      The Fab Four of Cley
      💃👭🚶

      Like

    • Dear Jude
      We very much hope so.
      Today we had a look 👀 at the high flood. 🌊🌊🌊 On Blakeney, next village, part of the High Street were deep under water and boats ⛵️ in streets. Siri and Selma 👭 were very excited.
      With warm greetings from the cold and wild sea
      The Fab Four of Cley
      💃👭🚶

      Liked by 2 people

    • Hey Jude
      The weather is horrible today, so we were only out for half an hour. We secured Siri and Selma with our strong fairy rope that they couldn’t be blown into the sea 🌊 Now we are sitting at home 🏡 Siri and Selma eating 🍭 sweets 🍭 and we have a nice cup ☕️ of coffee.
      We wish you a cosy Sunday, love ❤️ and fairy dust 💥✨💫
      💃👭🚶

      Liked by 1 person

  56. Da habt ihr mir eine ausgezeichnete Lektion in Wort und Bild erteilt. Es war hochinteressant von einem fotografischen Standpunkt zu lesen. Doch es ist viel mehr als das Portrait des Schreiners Nigel, das nur eine winzige Scheibe seines ganzen Wesens darstellt. Der Post weist auf das unendliche Spektum des Guten und des Bösen, des Schönen und des Hässlichen, des Barmhezigen und des Grausamen aller Menschen hin. Sehe ich zu viel, dann lasst mich bitte wissen. Aber das Bild ist wunderbar und Nigel wirkt sehr sympathisch.

    Liked by 3 people

    Reply

    • Lieber Peter
      Du hast völlig recht, Nigels Gesicht drückt wie jedes Gesicht eine Ganzheit aus. Es war ja völlig langweilig 😑 wenn es eindimensional nur gut 😊 oder nur böse 😤 wäre. Aber Bilder tun sich mit Ganzheiten schwer, da sie stets partikularisieren, was in ihrem Wesen liegt.
      Aber schön, dass dir Dinas Portrait von Nigel gefällt.
      Wir wünschen dir noch einen schönen, gemütlichen Abend. Wir verschwinden jetzt in unsere Sauna
      Tschüss
      💃👭🚶
      The Fab Four of Cley

      Liked by 1 person

    • Dear John,
      thank you very much for your kind words, which made us very happy 😊
      Well, we always like to learn something new and so we suppose that our visitors like this as well.
      Wishing you an easy weekend
      💃👭🚶
      The Fab Four of Cley

      Liked by 1 person

    • Hi, liebe ❤️ Peggy
      Nach tollem Sonnenschein ☀️ gestern ist hier heute das Wetter fürchterlich. Und wir vermissen so sehr ❄️ Schnee ❄️ und Eis. Aber Ende nächster Woche geht’s nach Norwegen 🇳🇴 und da hoffen wir auf gaaaanz viel Schnee ❄️
      Mit lieben Grüßen vom kleinen Dorf am großen Meer 🌊
      The Fab Four of Cley
      💃👭🚶

      Liked by 1 person

    • Dann wünsche ich Euch viel Spaß. Mir macht eigentlich kaum ein Wetter etwas aus, aber Regen knapp über der Frostgrenze würde ich auch lieber gegen 10 Grad kältere Temperaturen und Schnee eintauschen. 😀

      Liked by 2 people

    • Liebe Peggy
      Danke!
      Irgendwie brauchen wir richtige Winter, wir sind halt skandinavisch. Hanne eh und Masterchen ist in Schweden teilweise aufgewachsen und hat auch länger im hohen Norden Finnlands gewohnt.
      Wir fanden es in Montreal gut: tolle, bitterkalte Winter mit viel Schnee und feine Sommer, heiß und trocken.
      Liebe Grüße von Cley
      The Fab Four of Cley

      Liked by 1 person

  68. Ah, the beauty and history of a life well lived captured in an instant in a face that draws us in to a community. Stellar, Dina! I enjoyed every moment of this conversation. Photos give the gift of memories. I especially like this Paul Auster thought: “Memory is the space in which a thing happens for a second time.” Many hugs and lots of love going to my dear friends, the Fab Four of Cley.

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  69. Very interesting thoughts as always, and a beautiful portrait. His eyes twinkle with such menu and mischief! My first thoughts was Father Christmas on a day off…..he looks so kind….but reading later that he was an craftsman feels right. Isn’t it wonderful the way the brain works to find a comfortable fit which we can believe!

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    • Good afternoon, dear Seonaid,
      we really like your association father Christmas 🎄 on his day off and we are sure Nigel likes it too.
      It has its pros and cons that our brain always produces comfortable stories for us. As long as we don’t see the stories as real it’s fine and even fun.
      Do you have snow in Scotland? We very much miss the snow ❄️ here. But we are going to Norway 🇳🇴 next week and hope for masses of snow ❄️
      With warm greetings from the cold sea 🌊
      💃👭🚶

      Liked by 1 person

    • For portraiture you need a person who likes being photographed and you have to know him or her quite well, we suppose. It’s quite an intimate connection between the photographer and his mode – maybe not always like in Antonioni’s film 🎥 “Blow Up”
      Thanks 🙏 for commenting.
      We wish you a happy 😊 week
      💃👭🚶

      Liked by 1 person

  72. Yo apostaría mi sueldo completo , aunque no es gran cosa, que la foto mostraba un pescador. Hubiera perdido todo. Los estereotipos son muy fuertes en la primera mirada que tenemos sobre lo que vemos. Como siempre un post interesante. Saludos.

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  74. Ein schöner und interessanter Beitrag. Zum Glück haben wir ein reiches Vorstellungsvermögen und lassen uns von vielen Facetten irreleiten. Glücklich ist, wer Fantasie aht. In diesem Sinne: Freude uns allen. Einen lieben Gruss. Ernst

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    • Good afternoon, dear Julie
      we are happy that you like this portrait 🙂 One could write a lot about first impressions …but not here, not today. That would be another post about an interesting topic.
      Have a happy week wishing you
      The Fab Four of Cley

      Liked by 1 person

  76. Die Augen dieses Herrn haben es mir sofort angetan und was ich ganz sicher weiss ist, dass ich beim Anschauen dieses tollen Bildes nicht an den zukünftigen amerikanischen Präsidenten gedacht haben. Cari saluti und lieben Dank für die Erklärungen.

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  82. Ich hätte gesagt, das könnte unser Freund Kalle sein – auch kein Fischer – aber ein Handwerker 😉
    Ein tolles Bild, aber das Model hat auch ein interessantes Gesicht, das sich gut zum Malen mit der Kamera eignet.
    Einen lieben Gruß von der Silberdistel

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    • Guten Tag, liebe Silberdistel,
      ja, Nigel ist das ideale Modell. Dina machte gestern noch einige Aufnahmen mit ihm. Der Vorteil ist, dass er es liebt, fotografiert zu werden. Und da du doch auch Bücher liebst, wird es dich freuen zu lesen, dass er erstaunlich belesen ist. Er ist der ideale Gesprächspartner für Masterchen.
      Habe herzlichen Dank für deinen Kommentar und mach’s gut.
      Alles Liebe
      The Fab Four of Cley

      Liked by 1 person

    • Dear Laurie
      Thank you! Yes, he has.
      Dina likes Nigel as her model because he likes being photographed what helps a lot. Yesterday the two had a long photo session in Nigel’s workshop on the hill above the sea.
      We send you lots of love on the 135. birthday of Alan Alexander Milne today and wishing you a happy evening
      The Fab Four of Cley xxxx

      Like

  86. This intellectual varnisher very much would enjoy working with your intellectual cabinetmaker, I think. You’re certainly right that expectations (or prejudices, to use a more emotionally-laden term) certainly can lead to some surprises. When I first began working on the docks, before I became known, it was fun to see the shock on people’s faces when I produced coherent, grammatically correct sentences, or made reference to books or films. It wasn’t hard to figure out what their idea of a boat worker was, and I wasn’t it.

    I appreciated your comments about black and white photography, too. When I first began taking photos, and enjoying those produced by others, I wasn’t at all a fan of black and white. Slowly, slowly, I’ve been coming to appreciate it, and this post helped me to understand certain aspects of my growing appreciation.

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    • Thank you very much for your commentary we really like 🙂
      We are happy to read that we could help to understand b/w photography. Especially our dear Master is a fan of b/w photogaphy. He loves those subtle shades of grey (although he wrote several books about the prismatic colours). We Fab Four are all in favour of a kind of minimalism in art. To take away the colours is the first reduction. Of course with every reduction a picture becomes more abstract and by getting more abstract it condenses the essence of the object.
      Anyway, these are just some ideas which were leading us to this b/w portrait.
      With warm greetings from the cold sea
      The Fab Four of Cley

      Like

    • Good afternoon, dear Otto,
      thank you very much for liking our musings 🙂
      Well, as we know a picture and reality are different cups of tea.
      We wish you a happy weekend
      The Fab Four of Cley

      Liked by 2 people

  88. Today I eagerly clicked on your post Water by Dina. Unfortunately, I got an error message by WordPress: oops this page is not available. I wonder if you could tell what the problem is. Thanks!

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    • Dear Peter,
      SORRY, we made the mistake clicking the wrong buttom. The water-post was published by mistake and we deleted it immediately because it wasn’t finished. We will send it at the end of next week. That was the problem, sorry.
      Have a happy weekend.
      With love from sunny but cold sea
      The Fab Four of Cley

      Like

  92. Such a beautiful photograph ~ capturing so much in shades of grey, as you write above. The intellect of the eyes are pure – which could be a man of the sea, man of words, or as you allude to here, a master of woodworking and cabinet making. Impressive. I think the quote “a picture which shows a nearly archetypal idea of the prominent and beautiful face” is the description of what makes a portrait striking – prominent features (running all along the vast spectrum of beauty and possibility). A great photographer can find the beauty in anyone one, and when they do magic like is is produced. Beautiful!

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    • Good morning, dear Dalo,
      thank you VERY much for your kind commentary we enjoyed really much 🙂
      You are so right “A great photographer can find the beauty in anyone”. That means one can see beauty in every person or everyone is beautiful. Isn’t this a great idea?
      We wish you an easy weekend
      with love xx
      The Fab Four of Cley

      Liked by 1 person

  95. I don’t believe that every person brings the same eyes ,and how we see things is the beauty of what makes us different. The most important thing we can do is not judge each other. Even when we see something that we feel a strong negative impulse about,we must hold our tempers and breathe. To act like a fellow human being means to hand our last piece of bread to our neighbor,or at least half of it.We must always protect ourselves,but not at the expense of our neighborhood.That’s what being a good child is. Good children always play together,and are fascinated by their differences.Only bad kids bully each other.That becomes the political differences we carry into our adulthood. Which ones of us are selfish ,and which ones are selfless. We can be honest.I hope.Because,the real trouble that can topple a ruler is dishonesty. It may be the king of the country ,or his advisors, but lying will force any king to lose his kingdom. Perhaps that’s why I’m a feminist,because I always trusted girls to be more understanding than the other boys.I think seeing an older fisherman is a beautiful thing. He makes me smile,and a little hungry.

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  100. Hallihallo, unser herzallerliebster Schatz
    HAPPY BIRTHDAY and MANY HAPPY RETURNS
    es ist soooooooo megasupertoll mit dir!
    Mit gaaaaaaaanz viel feinsten und liebsten Feenhauch
    Siri 🙂 und 🙂 Selma, deine fröhlichen Buchfeen

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    • But what would be that photo without the text?
      Like in WEGEEs titles text and photo belong together, we suppose. It’s like painting and its title and what the artist writes about.
      Nevertheless thank you very much for liking Dina’s photo.
      Siri 🙂 and 🙂 Selma, the clever Bookfayries

      Liked by 1 person

  105. Zumindest ist er fotogen. Er scheint in sich zu ruhen. Meint: er ist bei sich. Wenn das so ist, dann zählt euch zu den Glücklichen. Und wenn das nicht so ist, dann macht es nichts. Ihr habt bestimmt viel mit ihm zu erzählen. Wunderbares Bild und klasse Post.

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    • Thank you very much, dear Adrian 🙂
      We are sure that Hanne will love your kind words. She is quite busy with family matters right now, but we are sure, she will soon answer herself as well.
      Wishing you an easy and cosy evening
      The Fab Four of Cley

      Liked by 1 person

  108. I like this pic but I prefer pics with colour. Our world is so wonderfully pretty that colours intensefy it a lot more. Anyhow really nice written, again !!! 😊

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    • Thank you for your nice comment. We love the world in colours too, but we think this one definitely looks better as a b&w. B&W is more about contrasts, highlights and shadows and drama and simply perfect for portraits. Architecture also looks great in monochrome. Sometimes, the world just looks better in black and white. Try it! 🙂
      Greetings from Norway,
      The Fab Four

      Liked by 1 person

    • Colours in photography
      Colours give the picture a kind of authenticy. They make the observer think that this a reproduction of reality. But a picture is not reality and never an authentic reproduction of reality. A picture is fiction, is a work of art, an artefact. Black-and-white photography is stressing this aspect of photography. It’s more abstract or one could say it’s a reflection about its object.
      I am a fan of black-and-white photography, loving those subtle shades of grey. But maybe it’s all a matter of taste.
      Thank you very much for inspiring me thinking about black-and-white photography.
      Have a happy day
      Klausbernd

      Liked by 2 people

    • Thanks I appreciate and agree to what you wrote interesting facts indeed and great that tastes are si different. E world would be boring if agreed to everything. Regards from cold and freezy Hamburg

      Liked by 2 people

  113. beautiful picture!! and even more beautiful write up. It is true, we see an image, or even a person, and automatically assume or form a story in our heads about them, without really knowing them or trying to. We need to do more of getting to know others, especially those different from us or what we are used to 🙂

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  124. It’s a handsome face and the photo enhances its beautiful features. I probably would have imagined what it was until your strong suggestion and final answer narrowed my scope significantly. Wonderful topic, though.

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  128. Pingback: Norfolk Easter | The World according to Dina

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