Water possesses a power over humans. One can live without food for six weeks, but only for a few days without water. Water is a necessity, but it is also a source of inspiration. In nature, waterfalls, calming and beautiful, the water of the mighty sea and rivers, and the water of lakes, of peaceful ponds, are places of rest, of reflection, a way to recharge our energy, and of cleansing our perspective. Water is also a source of joy, of recreation, that allows sports like swimming, the benefits of hot springs or simply the opportunity to walk with our bare feet in the salty and invigorating water of the sea. This week, Lotfi Bouslah of Lolo Pics shared a sublime photo, he calls " Golden Reflections ", a sort of dream of golden waters, from a moment on the beach of Azemour, on the west coast of Aokas, separated by a delta, in the border area between Aokas and Baccaro. This photo inspires by the beauty of its golden light, that dominates the scene, as a spiritual energy and presence that is very calm, very discrete. It is a photo that is saturated with a peace that celebrates silence. The colour gold has an ancient tradition in the world of art. In ancient Egypt, gold was the colour of the gods, of the pharaoh, of the sun god Ra. Gold and its colour were not only associated with wealth, but also with the mystery of immortality, as witnessed by the marvels of gold found in the tomb of the pharaoh Tutankhamen. In ancient Greece, statues were made of ivory and gold leaf, called chryselephantine statues, " chrysos " being the Greek word for gold, and " elephantos " being the Greek word for ivory, and the ivory was often burnt to obtain its black colour; these statues were made for temples, and were larger than life, and date from the period starting in 1500 B.C. The chryselephantine statues were guarded as precious treasures by the priestesses and priests and maintenance staff of the temples. The two best known examples, that were displayed at the temple of Olympia, were sculpted by the painter, sculptor and Greek architect Phidias ( c. 480 - 430 B.C. ) : a statue of the goddess Athena Parthenos, that measures 13 meters in height, and the statue of Zeus sitting, that stands at 12 meters in height, and is considered as one of the marvels of the ancient world. These chryselephantine statues were a way to showcase the wealth of those who built them and those who financed them.
In the modern world, the most famous example of an artist who celebrated gold in his art is the Austrian painter Gustav Klimt ( 1862 - 1918 ), who used gold leaf during the most important period of his career, with the paintings " Portrait of Adele Bloch " and " The Kiss " as the two most famous examples. Since 1998, the American painter of Italian origin, Vic Vicini, uses gold leaf to enhance the colours of his subjects. In 2008, Marc Quinn built a statue of gold, " Siren ", with as its model Kate Moss, as a modern Aphrodite. The statue is made of 18 karat gold, weighs 50 kg. and is the biggest sculpture made of gold since ancient Egyptian times.
The photo " Golden Reflections " of Lotfi Bouslah is of a quality that does not seek to boast, but that invites a moment of sublime peace through the beauty of this water of liquid gold. It is not water and its reflection the way it hypnotized Narcissus, this is a beauty of water that heals, that allows a moment of pure happiness on the part of the abundance of its golden, permeating, enveloping, warm light, that gives hope, and confidence, just because such a splendid and peaceful beauty exists.
A calm water invites pause, and these calm golden waters have something supernatural. In the Buddhist tradition, water is venerated as a symbol of long life, and also for its ability to take life, and to return the body to the elements, as in the Tibetan water burial rituals where the body is put in the river. Art inspires by its beauty, its interpretation of that beauty, and the photo of Lotfi Bouslah is of an exceptional beauty. All is golden light in his photo, the water, the edge of the beach in the foreground, the vegetation on the other riverbank, and even the green grasses in the background are saturated with this ubiquitous golden light. The photo gives the impression of an ancient presence that comes there to rest, and that leaves us with the perfume of its wisdom and its patience. It is a place where we want to stay to think, to breathe slowly, to remember beautiful moments, dreams, there, at the edge of this water, so beautiful, so gentle, and to talk to it in a low voice of our hopes, our troubles, of those we love, of those we miss, of those who make us smile, of those who challenge us, of the world, of eternity. A place that after we visit it, we have the courage again to continue our path, with in our heart the memory of these golden reflections left to us by the harmonious artistic vision of nature photographer Lotfi Bouslah.
Trudi Ralston
The research on the colour gold and gold and its importance in the world of arts and in the spiritual world, courtesy of Wikipedia.
The information on the location of the beach of Azemour, courtesy of nature photographer Lotfi Bouslah.
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