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art, digital photography, dVerse Poets Pub, newdigitalscapes, online poetry, Photography, poetics, poetry, poetry prompt, Sheila Moore, Walter W Smith, Writing
Good day, Poets! Today, I would like to introduce you to Walter Smith, a digital artist from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. From an early age, Walter developed a love for drawing and the visual arts. He attended both Lincoln University and Philadelphia College of Art and pursued both Liberal and Fine Arts.
After several years of study, he joined the Philadelphia Artists Cooperative (PAC) in 1987. PAC later became the Highwire Gallery Inc. and was one of the first emerging artist’s cooperatives in downtown Philadelphia. His seven years as a participating member was critical to his growth and success as an artist.
Walter then pursued a solo career which culminated in several group, two-person, and solo shows. Most notably are the 1997 group show at Agora Gallery in Soho, New York, the solo retrospective at the Villanova University Art Gallery, and the two-person show at the North Charleston City Gallery in South Carolina.
The one thing that I can readily point to as being the most influential force on my art is my life experience. Personal and intimate to my sense of awareness, it has been my goal to translate this experience into various forms of art.
Today, Walter is graciously offering four of his creations as inspiration for our Poetic writings, along with a short commentary about each piece:
Remove Yourself from the Painful Past and Uncertain Future
This piece is one of a series of works from the 2004 “Digitalscapes: A Transformation” exhibit at the North Charleston City Gallery in South Carolina. All of the pieces in the series are a reflection of the social, restorative, and contemplative transformation of the artist from the dense urban environment of Philadelphia to the open rural settings of the South. The major theme of the series and this piece in particular is the ambiguity of life within the sphere of change. Creatively speaking, it was during this period I was mainly concerned with constructing multi-photographic collages as a whole to convey a recovery aspect of my life.
Abstract 02 (From the Musee d Orsay series)
When utilizing the technical and creative process of digital art, my focus is mainly on the layering and composition of a piece. In doing so, I make little attempt to conceal or delineate the image, but instead construct, build, and expose the image as a new and provocative work of art. Abstract 02 is from a series reflecting on my visit to the Musee d Orsay in Paris, France. Although the museum is famous for its Impressionistic collection, I wanted to express the series as an abstract. The initial layer is a photograph of the interior of the museum. From there the layers create their own impression.
Ceremony Ashes (From the “Impressions in Barbados” series)
Ceremony is defined as a formal act or set of acts as prescribed by ritual, custom or etiquette (sacredness or religious rite.) There is something beautiful and magical about a ceremony. It brings people together. During our trip to Barbados, our group participated in a very moving one. It was an ash to sea ceremony. We found the location on the island which was noted as being nearest to Africa. It was there that the twelve of us performed what I will always remember as a beautiful and deep expression of love and remembrance. Some of us said a few words in observance of the passing, and others expressed compassion and recited poetry. And in the end there were flowers, sand, and surf coming together to set adrift the physical presence of a loved one. This series concentrated on imitating the look of impressionistic paintings by digital means.
Bridge (From the “Go Out and See” series)
A favorite outdoor activity is road biking, along with mountain biking. In the mountains of Western North Carolina are numerous opportunities to “Go Out and See.” This series consists of over twenty photographs taken after the 18 mile ride up one side of the mountain. Then down and up again the other side of the mountain. The second climb was the longest and hardest I had ever done. It was straight up into the sky. But along the way the ride gave us the most beautiful vistas. In this series I did not want to alter the original images too much, but instead accent the beauty within.
Many thanks to Walter for providing this week’s Poetics prompt via his inspirational art and words. To learn more about Walter’s work, you may contact him as follows:
Walter W Smith
Phone: 864 – 569 – 6533
Email address: seeartrun@yahoo.com
Artist website: www.newdigitalscapes.com
Art blog: www.walterwsmith.wordpress.com
Online store: www.newdigitalscapes.imagekind.com
• Choose one of Walter’s pieces and write a poem about how it speaks to you – what thoughts, emotions, and images it stirs within you. As you process and write, be aware of what you are experiencing in that moment, and channel it into your writing.
• Post your poem on your blog, then return here.
• Click on the Mr. Linky button below.
• In the new window, enter your name and the exact URL of your poem and click the submit button.
• Please visit the other participants as you can, commenting and sharing as you see fit, and finally, have a super-fantabulous weekend!
brian miller said:
great prompt sheila! really lik eall the color in the pictures…and the thought too of what you are experiencing in a moment…thanks for the intro to mr smith as well….
brian miller said:
neener neener claudia….ha…beat you to the first spot today…smiles…
Sheila said:
Lol – I let you win!
brian miller said:
smiles…
claudia said:
oh dang… i was running so fast…. smiles
brian miller said:
no you were playing in the ocean…smiles…
claudia said:
you know…i had no towel… smiles
brian miller said:
hahaha
walterwsmith3rd said:
Thanks Brian for the wonderful comment. And Shelia, this is exciting. I was at work. Glad you sent me this prompt. Looking forward to the poems.
Sheila said:
so glad you stopped in Walter. Hope you enjoy the fruits of your inspiration here as we did yours.
walterwsmith3rd said:
I certainly will Sheila. I just came back from checking out the poem by Grace. Very nice. This opportunity to meet everyone will be so inspiring.
bajanpoet said:
Thanks Walter for these prompts …. since I’m a Barbadian, you KNOW I had to use the Ashes Ceremony in Barbados piece…. and it fit exactly into a painful experience I had just yesterday, so …. thanks for helping me process some pain…
Sheila – wonderful prompt, as always 🙂
Sheila said:
thank you. I am glad this was able to help you write about your experience today.
claudia said:
nice sheila…thanks for introducing w. smith to us.. and great pics he brought to the pub…enjoyed also that he gives us some background info about them…
brian miller said:
that was a treat to read his insights…always love to watch artists at work…and always intersting to hear what is going on in their minds…
Sheila said:
Thanks Claudia! I think his life experience and philosophy is just as amazing as his art.
walterwsmith3rd said:
Hi claudia. Walter here. Thanks for participating in this challenge. This is exciting. Never had poets interpret my art before. Looking forward to your thoughts. 🙂
Sheila said:
Hi,everyone. Welcome to Poetics. Thank you Walter. Now let’s write!
walterwsmith3rd said:
Thank you Shelia. Hey do I follow the Mr.n Linky link to connect with everyone? 🙂 I am excited. This is like peace , love and happiness.
Sheila said:
yes, Walter. Click on the Mr. Linky to see who all has linked their poems up. The list will grow and grow all the way through Sunday night!
Grace said:
Thank you for the interesting article Sheila. What an amazing artist.
My post is up ~
(aka Heaven)
walterwsmith3rd said:
Hi Grace, Walter here. Thank you for the cool comment. Looking forward to your poem.
Peace and Light.
Grace said:
Yes, the bridge picture is lovely. And it is often symbolic of our journey to and from ourselves. Peace and light ~
wcg1670 said:
afternoon Sheila….Jack neat, please….ok, the artistic eye behind the lens ….well, for me, images should create thought and thought should develop to words, so finding words to reverse the process from an image to the pen…no problem…ARGhhhhh
off to pic and pin
thanks for hosting and I’ll return for a refill soon
Peace ☮
Sheila said:
great! I’ll have your refill waiting when you return 🙂
wcg1670 said:
whew…what a trip…I’m ready for that drink now, Sheila…..what an afternoon…we almost didn’t make it back…where’d we go, you ask?….we went…..to see
come see
Peace ☮
walterwsmith3rd said:
Hi wcg.You said it well. Looking forward to reading what your pen has to offer 🙂
Daydreamertoo said:
Thanks to Walter for the pictures. Amazing colours and artistry that goes into each piece. I looked at each but, the Bridge seemed to say a lot to me today.
Great post Sheila and thanks for the prompt and to all for running such a great pub!
brian miller said:
bren you are awesome…and great response on the prompt too…
walterwsmith3rd said:
Thanks Daydreamertoo, for the nice comment. I am glad the Bridge piece resonated with you. Looking forward to reading your poem.
Walter
Victoria C. Slotto said:
Sheila, thank you for introducing us to Walter, and Walter…your work is incredible. I’m especially moved by your use of color and implied texture.
Sheila said:
good to see you Victoria.
walterwsmith3rd said:
Thank you Victoria. I appreciate your comment. Looking forward to you poem.
Walter
Sheila said:
ok, I am through the first ten, all very good! – can’t wait to read the next!!!
yoga-adan said:
what a great writeup prompt and series of images; much thanks to sheila & walter
esp liked the bridge and beach scenes, the former reminding me of the bridges here in vermont, the latter my old beaches in galveston (and that watercolor paper impressionist sky! those ladies knew they had a great day!)
wish i could contribute (with a poem) but am in the midst of large # of projects readying for this week, much prep done but much more to go
but wanted to say how spot-on this prompt is, esp for awareness of ourselves in the moment responding to an image (which of course is already a set of feelings and ideas)
did slip in a digg to some folk, then stumbleupon’d a few more to know about this 😉
hope to visit a few poets’ work too, best wishes all
walterwsmith3rd said:
Thanks yoga-adan, I will definitely stop by your blog and see what you are up too. Your comments are much appreciated.
Walter
yoga-adan said:
my pleasure walter, you’ve some nice work there, plus with the awareness prompt, regarding our lives living within us at the moment of vision, great combo
nice too to see what someone else with a penchant for composition and layering does (your is much more evolved and developed than mine 😉 )
thanks again, best wishes walter 😉
walterwsmith3rd said:
Reblogged this on n e w d i g i t a l s c a p e s and commented:
I am excited to be the featured artist for this weekends dversepoets’ poetic-awareness of the experience. I like to thank Sheila for inviting me, and all the poets who are participating.
Peace and Love
Walter
Shawna said:
Thanks for sharing your work with us, Walter. It’s incredible! You are extremely talented. This was so much fun.
walterwsmith3rd said:
Thank you Shawna. I will be stopping by your post and your blog to see what you are up to.
brian miller said:
thanks walter…i really like how you are interacting with everyone…not all artists do that…sets you apart man and much appreciated…
walterwsmith3rd said:
Thanks Brian. I have had little sleep since Thursday night. And I will be getting out the house at 7 am. Need to sleep now. But damn this just keeps the blood flowing. Alas, I think I will have to continue connecting tomorrow. And I am suppose to be seeing the film Pina, about the German choreographer tomorrow. I’ve seen her dance group Tanztheather Wupperthal perform several times in NYC, so I am looking forward to the documentary. But again I appreciate all great work here.
Sheila said:
hope you get some sleep, Walter. So, glad you stopped in and met some of these wonderful poets we get to enjoy, some several times a week! The links will stay connected to this post indefinitely so feel free to come back anytime to read what you may have missed.
In the meantime, poets, Mr. Linky stays active until midnight on Sunday, so keep those poems coming!!! I am off to read where I left off before dinner. Thanks, everyone!
ManicDdaily said:
Hi Sheila, Walter–thanks for the great prompt and thank you, Walter, for the beautiful pix. They were all lovely (as are those on your website.) I think I ended going a bit tame! (And too long!) But I enjoyed the exercise. Thanks again. K.
Sheila said:
off to check out your write, K. thanks!
walterwsmith3rd said:
Thank you K. I am glad you enjoy the images. And thanks for visiting my website. I think I may post today a “best of” … a collection of my most visited posts. Perhaps (5) links. Do check them out 🙂
tashtoo said:
Sheila! What an amazing talent you bring us today! Walter…I am completely in awe of the fantastic selections chosen for us. They are ALIVE!!! I’m running late…actually, I think I’m just running…but I wanted to swing by and tell you I checked in first via phone and the images were just stunning and I had to stop in and say thank you both. My pen will be inspired…even if that means writing in the dark before the dawn.
walterwsmith3rd said:
Wow Natasha you actually used all CAPS – “ALIVE” to describe my work. I love it. Thanks. I am thinking of doing a “best of” post today featuring my 5 most popular posts. Check it out.
brian miller said:
rolling out for a bit….be back to catch up shortly poets….
Shawna said:
Finally finished! I wrote about the fun and peaceful worlds that appeared to me as I “experienced” my favorite image.
Sheila said:
Dealing with kitchen cupcake catastrophes and now dinner. Will catch up later this eve.
brian miller said:
there def sounds like a story behind the kitchen cupcake catastrophe….
brian miller said:
alright poets…i am back….a rousing game of basketball this evening…my night being made by the Tarheels trouncing the arch rivals…ready to read some poetry…smiles.
Mary Mansfield said:
Big thanks to Sheila and Walter for a great prompt! These pictures were amazing. It was most difficult to narrow down my pick, but the Bridge just seemed to have a story it was screaming at me, and far be it for me to ignore a screaming muse when she’s so temperamental on such a regular basis. Looking forward to seeing where everyone else’s poems took them. 🙂
Sheila said:
don’t ignore a screaming muse, for sure! lol
patriciaspreng said:
Oh, so glad to be here again and find the place still so warm and friendly… think I’ll pull up a chair and read a bit. Walter, I love it when the artist responds to the comments… thank you for sharing your work with us tonight. Such an incredibly moving scene at the beach. Thank you Sheila!! Good job!
brian miller said:
yay great to see you patricia! feels like a long while…nice piece tonight as well…
patriciaspreng said:
Thank you Brian… new position at work, more hours, trying to balance it all… sending you a hug.
brian miller said:
i hear you…are you enjoying the new job? hugs back
Sheila said:
aw, thanks, Patricia. So, nice to hear from you!
walterwsmith3rd said:
Thank you Patricia. I appreciate your comment. Be on the look out today for a “best of” post. Featuring my most popular posts. I wll get over to your poem today.
Laurie Kolp said:
Yeah! I made it back in time to write and post before I plop into bed… it was a long road trip.
brian miller said:
welcome home…now go get some rest…smiles…
brian miller said:
headed that way myself….see you in the morning poets!
Susie Clevenger said:
Love the prompt and intro to the art of Walter Smith. I looked at the image of the bridge and went with what it said to me. I didn’t edit…I just wrote.
walterwsmith3rd said:
Hi Susie, I will be checking out your poem today. Looking forward to it.
Sheila said:
wonderful poems out there. keep ’em coming. Looking forward to reading more in the morning. Nite, all.
metanoia unabashed said:
this is truly one of the coolest things that has ever happened to me, happening on this blog, I don’t even remember how – there is such a thing as accidental poetry, that is to say, when two forces collide with momentum and unawares, a third force is inevitably created – why do people assume that accidents are negative? or this statement that “there are no accidents” – there are. For the good or for the bad is simply perspective.
Hi everyone, thank you for this place and to all who tent to it.
brian miller said:
def believe there are no accidents….glad to have you and that you are having fun….
Sheila said:
what a wonderful thing to say! we are so glad you are here, welcome!
Brian Carlin said:
Won’t be able to post as am winging my way to Tunisia for a week, but the images above, are stunning and I look forward to hunting down more of Walter. A week in Africa will recharge the old batteries and will post the finished idea buzzing round my head on return, …you all take care now, 🙂
claudia said:
ah nice.. have fun in tunisia brian..
brian miller said:
travel light brian
Sheila said:
safe travels to you, brian. thanks for checking in.
rob ksitner said:
Nice art pieces. I am also a digital artist, but I don’t use photographs as a basis, except for some digital collages I’ve created in the past few years. I first ventured into digital art in the mid 1990’s when my son Justin and I founded DigiSeeThat Studio, and began experimenting with Wacom sketching tablets, manipulating the images at very high resolution through apps like Photoshop, Kai’s power tools, Alien Skin plug-ins, and others. We would then print the images in very large format on treated canvass, utilizing an Epson 3000 commercial grade color printer. Epson had established our DigiSeeThat Studio as an early beta test site for their model 3000. Since this past Friday, I’ve posted 10 of my pieces, spanning 17 years, on my Facebook Timeline >>> https://www.facebook.com/rob.kistner#!/profile.php?id=690186747
Lydia said:
Thank you for this special prompt. I am wiped out from (but grateful for) the emotional release it provided me.
Sheila said:
emotional release is good – glad this help facilitate it for you, Lydia.
vivinfrance said:
Lovely, lovely images, especially the last two – echoes of my own life. I shall write when I get home on Tuesday.
brian said:
just getting in from church…about to play a little catch up…happy sunday all…
Sheila said:
38 fantastic poems. Give me some more! 😀
Shaista said:
Yes, I agree with an earlier comment -the work is very ALIVE 🙂
I haven’t written a poem specifically, rather had a poem running through my mind all day which seemed too serendipitous to not link with Walter’s ‘Go Out And See’ painting – so if it is breaking the rules, forgive me for joining the party – but then who among us doesn’t like breaking the rules every now and again?!
Off to read your work now…
yoga-adan said:
ok –
so i lied, made a mistake, misjudged, erred
what”ever” 😉
i got a poem in anyway!!!!
never would’ve believed it with today’s schedule, but, it happens 😉
thanks you guys!
brian miller said:
yay you made it back…on my way over….
yoga-adan said:
😉 yay! definitely! 😉