An Atlanta friend, noted landscape architect/designer, John Howard, came to town recently. Of course, I was in seventh heaven, with so many shared interests, spending an afternoon chattering away from lunch overlooking the ocean to a long stroll through the three acres of Parterre. And details were a big topic…John’s projects and his handsome website personify the power of focusing on this not inconsequential point.
So, inspired by his “love of small moments,” as he charmingly describes them, I went through some of my 56,000 images to take a welcome look at the details that have always been top of mind for me! Sometimes it may be that magical golden light, or the rareness of an accessory, or the clouds extra puffy, or the garden fresh from a shower (as in the feature image above)…all contributing to the worthiness of the chosen snippets for this blog…details that by their close-up aspect have an impactful presence. Examples abound at Parterre…
Silhouettes, and architectural curves echoed in the dormer, the copper roof, the curve of the top of the wrought iron gate.
Close ups allow you to “read” the contrast in textures…lichen on an old, old wooden bench…the feather-y froth of ferns, or…
stucco when it turns a soft pink in the early dawn of a spring day…or the details of a pergola.
Often, details are enhanced by a difference in scale or juxtapositions. The finial of the peaked roof…the cannonball accent of the arched dormer…in contrast to the precious new growth of a specimen tree.
Capturing the bold and the delicate…an old cotoneaster “love knot” scaling the library wall aside a very new miniature gingko standard.
A cluster of details with the Parterre bench as a backdrop…
That golden light I mentioned earlier can prompt you to notice a detail you may have missed before…like the curved metal edge of the parterres in the Fountain Garden.
I revel in the many architectural details about the home we built 25 years ago; zooming in on each brings me such delight!
One of my fave still life details…a mighty ‘Sum and Substance’ hosta, and delicate Japanese painted fern, embracing an old marble container.
Another embrace…’Eden’ roses surrounding an antique leaded glass window that has a wonderful “origin” tale.
Details recall memories…antique wrought iron gates leading into the gardens immediately remind me of the day that I secured them from a house that was being torn down.
And then there is the nostalgia factor. A vignette at the side door, each element a study in detail itself. What stands out for me at this point in time? The detailed old cement planters that are almost impossible to find today.
“I’m ready for my closeup, Mr. DeMille…”
Oh, my, dear…you “had me,” at 56,000…my hubs actually found me, in the next room, to see “what had happened.” You are just…SO ON point…detail, beauty, warmth…it brings tears of another kind…oh, dear… franki
LOVELY LADY,
OVER TWENTY-FIVE YEARS AGO, I ATTENDED AN EXTREMELY PRIVATE ‘GATHERING’ – IN WASHINGTON, D.C. (ON MASS. AVE.) TO CELEBRATE: ‘THE INSTALMENT COMPLETION’, OF A MOST ASTOUNDING ART COLLECTION.
IN THE DRESSING ROOM OF OUR HOSTESS, MRS. R. KOGOD, ON HER DRESSING VANITY (GLORIOUS, IN ITS ART-NOUVEAU FRAME), WAS: THE NEW YORKER
CARTOON. PICTURED WAS ONE S.R. – GRAND DAME, SAYING TO HER HOSTESS:
(AFTER HAVING JUST VIEWED HER FABULOUS HOME …)
‘DARLING, I JUST LOVE WHAT YOU’VE DONE WITH YOUR MONEY!’
EVERY TIME YOU OFFER (US) – ACCESS TO YOUR DREAM … WE ARE GRATEFUL.
FONDLY,
TOM
What a hoot of a story!! Thanks for sharing, xB
It’s all lovely, Bettie. Your taste is flawless.
So beautiful!! Thanks for sharing all the lovely moments and memories with us Bettie!
Each photograph is a future painting! Delightful pictures and wonderful commentary.
Nothing missing in details. BEAUTIFUL!
And I just love what you have done with your creativity and determination. They say when the life of someone who has positively impacted their world departs, an entire library of their projected giftedness closes. What a legacy you are building, Bettie dear. How fortunate we are to have you.