by rock paintings & blogs
©Bradshaw Foundation
I’m thrilled whenever I come across images of ancient rock art unexpectedly and this has just happened twice over two days. Regular readers will know that it’s a subject of great interest and inspiration for me even in my own art making.
Wood s lot is on my daily blog read and yesterday offered a special reward of a lovely image and many links to the Bradshaw paintings of Australia. I’ve seen these before on the fabulous Bradshaw Foundation site, which I’ve mentioned several times here, but warrants a fresh new look that is always inspiring, and the site is updated with new finds periodically.
One of the links is to Australian Gary Sauer-Thompson’s blog junk for code. Lots of images of the Bradshaw paintings here, and a very interesting new-to-me blog about arts, culture and philosophy to explore.
The second find caught my eye today, over at Via Negativa, in the side bar under Smorgasblog where Dave selects excerpts from his daily blog reads. Under Find Me a Bluebird the first lines are:
rock paintings made from oxides, blood and fat, still there after several hundred years…
Do you think I could resist that? It’s as if it was selected especially for me! I’ve occasionally visited Find Me a Bluebird, and this visit was very special, about a river rafting journey on the Salmon River in Idaho, USA. I’ve been to parts of this area but never rafting on the river, and finding a rock painting! Go have a look at all the gorgeous photos with a lovely poem.
UPDATE Sept.22.06: MB of Find me a Bluebird has posted a moving poem Old River Bed accompanied with a photo of another gorgeous pictograph. What an inspirational river journey that was!
September 19, 2006 in Blogging, Rock Art & Archaeology by Marja-Leena
I’m glad you find the Smorgasblog useful! MB’s poems are always worth checking out. The Bradshaw material was interesting — I hadn’t heard of that.
Marja-Leena, I just happened to find that you’d linked to my post! I’m glad to know you enjoyed it. I also appreciate rock art, and have had the pleasure of admiring many pictographs throughout the western US. I have another photo from that same raft trip that I’ll be posting this week.
Dave, yes I really enjoy your Smorgasblog selections, some are real treasures that prove that blogs are worthy and wonderful! And I’m glad that you found something new to enjoy in the Bradshaw paintings!
MB, thanks for visiting here and for sharing your photos of that trip! I’m going to keep an eye out for your other pictograph photo. Have you ever posted the ones from your other travels?
Thanks so much for this link. My Colonel who has now returned home to Idaho sent me a couple of his own whitewater rafting pics last week. I have sent him these superb ones which I know he will simply rave about. You do have a knack of picking the right topics.
Anna, I’m glad to know I’m not just talking to thin air about my odd interests!
No, I haven’t posted the others; they’re buried in boxes of film, I’m afraid, though seared in my memory. I really haven’t looked back since going digital! Thanks for your kind words about the poem.