November 2017
Creative Spirits Gallery
Creative Spirits Gallery welcomes Donna Herzfeldt-Kamprath, co-lead pastor of West Linn Lutheran Church, in the gallery for November. She will be sharing photographs from the sabbatical trip she spent on the island of St. Croix, USVI. This gallery is one of her commitments to invite others into the contemplative experience she is learning about through photography. In this display the choices pay particular attention to framing, focus, eyes, and edges. The Art Team invites everyone to an open house with Pastor Donna on Saturday, November 11, from 5:00-7:00 pm in the gallery. The gallery is housed in West Linn Lutheran Church, 20390 Willamette Drive, West Linn. For further information see the church website: www.wllc.org.
Contact: Pastor Donna Herzfeldt-Kamprath
pastordonna@wllc.org
20390 Willamette Drive, West Linn
503-656-0110
Artist Statement: Donna Herzfeldt-Kamprath
This artist statement, and the opportunity to think of myself as an artist emerges out of the gift of Sabbatical I received from West Linn Lutheran Church and the Clergy Renewal Grant from Lilly Foundation. So, I begin with “thank you”! I thank the congregation for the gift of time to step out from daily tasks, and to step into places where I could rest and renew my vision. I am grateful for the gift of the grant that paid for travel, living arrangements, and the Canon EOS Rebel T5i camera used for this body of work.
For about 9 years I have been discovering a love for taking pictures, examining photos, creating albums, and sharing those. This growing passion has coincided with the creation of the Creative Spirits Art Gallery at our church which surrounds my work space with wonderful art in many mediums on a daily basis. Developing my artistic nature and skills is a dream that now I am integrating more and more into my life.
My sabbatical goals included practicing and enhancing my skills as a photographer, developing this as a spiritual practice, and sharing my experience with the congregation. The photos being shared in this exhibit include
+ Scenes of a “dilapidated house” on the property of the Grünewald Guild near Leavenworth, Washington, where I spent 10 days in retreat and participating in Sacred Arts Week;
+ and images from the waters, jungles, and streets of St. Croix, USVI, where Tim and I spent six weeks living, swimming and snorkeling, resting, and reflecting.
During those weeks I used guided reflections by Christine Valters Paintner from Eyes of the Heart: Photography as a Christian Contemplative Practice.
When I discovered there was a water lily pond near our cottage in the jungle of St. Croix, I finally got up early one morning, grabbed my camera, and wandered down there. Perched on the rock alongside an old plastic chair, I looked over a scattering of white and pink flowers - some alert, some reposing. Click. Settling in, I gazed more closely. Flower clusters played with one another. Leaves obscured the stems that connected the pads. Click. Settling in, I could use my zoom to look more closely at how edges of flowers rippled the water, and shadows of trees overhead made impressions. Click. In time, clouds moved, light changed, petals glowed, dragonflies flit. Click. I found I could sit there for a long time, and return as many mornings as I could. Repetition. Return. Reflection.
The gift of a sabbatical was time – time to return to spaces like the pond, the waters where we snorkeled, the beaches and city streets, the ruins of plantations and sugar mills of St. Croix, and even the broken-down house in Washington! And then, months later, I felt like I was returning yet again as I contemplated what to share in this exhibit. The post-production process allowed me to savor what I saw and received, and to have new experiences discovering the depths of the pond, the people on the streets, and the eyes of the water creatures. For me, this long-term process evokes joy and wonder at God’s creative power, and the work of the Spirit to reclaim what is lost or overlooked, and to raise up a celebration of life.
Come along with me on this journey of faith! “Photography has the capacity to teach us how to see all of ourselves [light and shadow] as graced, by slowly teaching us to allow more and more possibilities into the frame.” (Valters Painter, page 46) I am focusing on framing, focus, eyes, and edges for this exhibit. Also, some of the voices that have influenced me are included in the quotes scattered throughout the exhibit. At the end of the sabbatical, we were encouraged to “keep Sabbath-ing” by a colleague. Continuing to look deeply through photography, and to allow myself to be an artist-contemplative will be my growing spiritual edge!
Contact: Pastor Donna Herzfeldt-Kamprath
pastordonna@wllc.org
20390 Willamette Drive, West Linn
503-656-0110
Artist Statement: Donna Herzfeldt-Kamprath
This artist statement, and the opportunity to think of myself as an artist emerges out of the gift of Sabbatical I received from West Linn Lutheran Church and the Clergy Renewal Grant from Lilly Foundation. So, I begin with “thank you”! I thank the congregation for the gift of time to step out from daily tasks, and to step into places where I could rest and renew my vision. I am grateful for the gift of the grant that paid for travel, living arrangements, and the Canon EOS Rebel T5i camera used for this body of work.
For about 9 years I have been discovering a love for taking pictures, examining photos, creating albums, and sharing those. This growing passion has coincided with the creation of the Creative Spirits Art Gallery at our church which surrounds my work space with wonderful art in many mediums on a daily basis. Developing my artistic nature and skills is a dream that now I am integrating more and more into my life.
My sabbatical goals included practicing and enhancing my skills as a photographer, developing this as a spiritual practice, and sharing my experience with the congregation. The photos being shared in this exhibit include
+ Scenes of a “dilapidated house” on the property of the Grünewald Guild near Leavenworth, Washington, where I spent 10 days in retreat and participating in Sacred Arts Week;
+ and images from the waters, jungles, and streets of St. Croix, USVI, where Tim and I spent six weeks living, swimming and snorkeling, resting, and reflecting.
During those weeks I used guided reflections by Christine Valters Paintner from Eyes of the Heart: Photography as a Christian Contemplative Practice.
When I discovered there was a water lily pond near our cottage in the jungle of St. Croix, I finally got up early one morning, grabbed my camera, and wandered down there. Perched on the rock alongside an old plastic chair, I looked over a scattering of white and pink flowers - some alert, some reposing. Click. Settling in, I gazed more closely. Flower clusters played with one another. Leaves obscured the stems that connected the pads. Click. Settling in, I could use my zoom to look more closely at how edges of flowers rippled the water, and shadows of trees overhead made impressions. Click. In time, clouds moved, light changed, petals glowed, dragonflies flit. Click. I found I could sit there for a long time, and return as many mornings as I could. Repetition. Return. Reflection.
The gift of a sabbatical was time – time to return to spaces like the pond, the waters where we snorkeled, the beaches and city streets, the ruins of plantations and sugar mills of St. Croix, and even the broken-down house in Washington! And then, months later, I felt like I was returning yet again as I contemplated what to share in this exhibit. The post-production process allowed me to savor what I saw and received, and to have new experiences discovering the depths of the pond, the people on the streets, and the eyes of the water creatures. For me, this long-term process evokes joy and wonder at God’s creative power, and the work of the Spirit to reclaim what is lost or overlooked, and to raise up a celebration of life.
Come along with me on this journey of faith! “Photography has the capacity to teach us how to see all of ourselves [light and shadow] as graced, by slowly teaching us to allow more and more possibilities into the frame.” (Valters Painter, page 46) I am focusing on framing, focus, eyes, and edges for this exhibit. Also, some of the voices that have influenced me are included in the quotes scattered throughout the exhibit. At the end of the sabbatical, we were encouraged to “keep Sabbath-ing” by a colleague. Continuing to look deeply through photography, and to allow myself to be an artist-contemplative will be my growing spiritual edge!
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