iPhone Photography: Cherries

I didn’t make it to the Farmer’s Market this weekend. I was too busy working on commissions. But I saw wood pigeons in the oak tree outside my windows. I heard the sound of acorns as they hit the ground. I saw the Big Dipper from my kitchen window. I thought of absent friends. Separated by time or place or death. I felt the scent of red sage and enveloped myself in the soft touch of my corduroy jacket. I cried when I listened to Jeff Buckley (it never fails).

I saw a rainbow and made a wish. I ought to have done some laundry and the freezer desperately needs defrosting, but I did none of that. In fact, I struggled to remember meals. Sleep. Instead I thought about the ancient Egyptians and their royal tombs and made sketches for my commissions. The scent of Calamintha brought me to Tuscany. Greek Basil brought me back to Crete. Then I bought two handfuls of cherries and put them in the brown bowl we bought in Barcelona. Travelling in my mind.

iPhone photography: city walls Visby

Here’s my letter from my journey to Visby on Gotland, my snapshots, my postcards, some of my thoughts and visual inspirations. A letter from “the island of roses and ruins”.

iPhone photography: blue cottage with roses, Visby, Gotland

This adorable cottage covered in roses is one of many in Klinten, the upper part of old Visby. So picturesque that it’s almost surreal! And yet, Klinten used to be a poor part of town. Today, these properties fetch a high price.

iPhone photography: ruined cathedral, Visby, Gotland

In the old part of Visby there are so many ruined churches from the 11-13th centuries that you can easily lose count. But why are the ruins still there? Why, in all these centuries, didn’t anyone tear them down? These ruins in the middle of a city that played such an important role? Because all ruins start off as derelict buildings, and it isn’t until hundreds of years later that we can appreciate them as ruins and even think of them as romantic.

Some sources claim that after the churches were abandoned, they were used to keep cattle in and that the city by then was so poor that they couldn’t afford to pull down the buildings. It’s intriguing. And to think if there will be any ruins left from our time? To imagine people in hundreds of years, strolling through ruins built in our days, snapping photos and imagining our time…

iPhone photography: poppies

On my way to the beach to gather my thoughts, I came across these poppies and I snapped this shot before wandering along the seashore.

iPhone photography: the baltic sea

I was thinking about cities, and how they grow with time, how the patchwork of different times gets stitched into the weave of the city and how it reminds me of growth and “imperfection”. Memories living on the same doorstep as day-to-day life. That a city evolves much like a human, with bits and pieces from different times, with scars, additions, broken parts, victories, plans, dreams and losses. That all these layers of truths, or identities, each as valid, blend into the identity of the city. Or the person.

iPhone photography: purple poppy

As I cut through the Botanical Gardens, I took a photo of this purple poppy. When I got back home I was struck by the serendipity of it! What happened? Where did the glow come from? I don’t know, but it looks magic.

iPhone photography: flowers on patterned table cloth

At the crêperie in Visby I’m taken aback by the combination of romantic flowers in a vase and a bold, modern, black and white pattern on the table cloth.

iPhone photography: peacock pattern

Café Krönet has the most amazing view of the Baltic Sea as well as the most imaginatively designed restroom with this fabulous peacock pattern on the wallpaper as well as framed as a picture.

And finally, another serendipitous photo, this time of a poppy. Ordinary magic.

iPhone photography: poppy

iPhone photography: View of Visby, Gotland

Back from three blissful weeks in Visby on Gotland – “the island of roses and ruins”. Waking up each morning to the sounds of birdsong and church bells and having locally grown strawberries for breakfast. Shakespeare’s Macbeth performed in a ruined medieval monastery. Watching the fairytale Swedish Royal wedding (extra exotic for me as I haven’t watched TV at home for six years) on TV. Morning walks along the medieval city wall. Runestones and Viking treasures of gold and silver and Greek, Roman and Byzantine coins dug up to this day all over the island. Walks in the botanical gardens (founded by The Bathing Friends in 1856). The scent of lilacs and roses on the terrace with a marvellous view of the city and the Baltic Sea. A magic Midsummer’s Eve.

The sunset tucked in a hibiscus petal, wrapping it around the horizon. White nights where each sunset faded into a new morning, dusk transitioning into dawn. Swallows, roses, blackbirds, poppies, blueweed, wood pigeons, peonies, pebbles and seaweed on the beech. Daisies and white clover. The salty scent of the sea. I took photos of the view from the terrace (almost) every day, just like I do with the oak tree outside the windows of my home.

As I unpack my lime green suitcase I find a mind map for creative ideas and inspirations, a few watercolours, a heavy stack of books, photos taken with my iPhone, a poem I wrote on the back of a napkin, some sketches I made on my iPad, a bag of saffron and almond rusks, jars of honey and Ramsons (wild garlic) pesto from Gotland and a gigantic pile of dirty laundry.

I feel so grateful and energized from this trip. Relaxed. Determined to find a new way to continue to live a slow life, staying on a Slow Media Diet. I feel inspired. And then I think about how I feel it’s so vital to travel. A change of scenery, however small or big the change may be. It can be something as simple as making the wrong turn when you step off the bus, or opening yourself up to an impulse to take a peek at what’s behind that building you always pass by on your way to something else.

And as I sit here typing this post, just about to write something about how our inner journey is as important as our outer journey, I hear the sound of a massive fireworks display. And I by that, I mean really impressive and orchestral, symphonic and majestic. I go out on the balcony to see if I can catch a glimpse of the fireworks, but I can’t, I can just hear the sounds… I’ll use my creative license to interpret the fireworks as a celebration for travel, for getting off the beaten track, for newfound inspiration, for growth, for rest and for fun and playful creativity.

iPhone photography: Train tracks at Västervik railway station.

There’s something entrancing about the sound of trains rattling by. The hypnotic rhythm of the train drawing closer and passing by into a future of its own. Rails singing. The sound of travel.

An hour before dusk I was sitting by the harbour watching the fish come up to the surface to feed. And in Västervik, I found the house that my Swedish grandfather grew up in. Travelling through Småland, passing through the coast, fields, and deep into the woods, past lakes, rivers and meadows. Tints of yellow and rust among the greens.

Arriving on Öland, “solen och vindarnas ö”, the island of the sun and the winds. A ruined castle. Crafters and artists. Traces of a 18th century seaside resort. A spa-town off-season. Windmills. Endless flat plains and long white beaches. Harvest festival and art happening.

Sometimes time is elastic. A short trip packed with impressions expanded my sense of time, leaving me with a feeling of at least twice the time. Heightened senses, just like falling in love.

I saw a magnificent rainbow and I can’t remember when I last saw the Milky Way so clearly, the stars so bright! And yes, I made wishes.

iPhone photography: Sailboats and sunset. Borgholm, Öland.

iPhone photography: my journey to Gotland

This summer I’ve been trying to follow the grain and let my heart leap. Refill my creative well. Restart. Reconnect with my intuition. Be playful every day. Reignitie my art. And I found a theme of roses hidden in the emerging patterns.

I’ve been unravelling my interest in photography, bringing my camera with me wherever I go. It’s so inspiring and opens my channels for creativity!

I’m taking my camera on a journey through my everyday summer life and I brought it on my trip to Gotland, “the island of roses”, in the middle of the Baltic Sea. You can browse my photography journey on Flickr.

Exploring medieval ruins, being in motion and travelling through my days.