Sand Mirrors

The images in Sand Mirrors — which might be called metaphorical photographs — were taken on a variety of beaches located along the Northern California and Oregon coasts during 2007 - 2011. These beaches are notable for their relative isolation, expanse, stark uplifted and eroded rocks. backdrop of richly foliated coastal cliffs, and variety of sands (basalts; silicates).

This compelling landscape was born in a cataclysmic collision of continental plates and vigorous vulcanism, and shaped over millennia by continuing tectonic activity, and the erosive power of the Pacific Ocean. Fresh water streams flow through many of these beaches, carrying silt and minerals seaward from the nearby coastal range. It is the merging of ocean sands and finely ground minerals at the interface of fresh water and ocean tides that creates patterns that are at once transient, yet somehow timeless as well. By recording these patterns, I aspire to achieve the nearly impossible: evoking the seen and unseen rhythms of an ever-changing landscape, reshaped by wind, tide, and the pulse of the earth itself.

These images have been married to poems by Richard Clarke, a Zen master whose words are a meditation on landscape, time and timelessness. The resulting book, will be available in e- and printed- versions (spring 2012). Sand Mirrors is intended as a 'living book', one which offers the opportunity for readers to communicate with the authors and share their comments or questions with a wider audience via a moderated blog accessible through the book's website (www.sandmirrors.com). The website also provides a link to an audio conversation between Richard and Stephen during which they explore their thoughts regarding the book’s creation. The authors will also offer a limited edition of Sand Mirrors which includes a signed print.

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© 2000 - Text and Photographs - Stephen E. Strom