Whenever I see Water Lilies in bloom, I immediately think of one of my favorite artists—Claude Monet. During the last thirty years of his life, water lilies (Nymphéas in French) were the main focus of his artistic production. One of the museums that I most love visiting is the Musée de l’Orangerie in Paris, because it houses eight massive water lily murals by Monet in two specially-built oval rooms. It is incredibly peaceful to just sit in one of those rooms, surrounded by those amazing paintings.
During a visit to Kenilworth Park and Aquatic Gardens in Washington D.C. in mid-July, I chose to focus my attention on capturing portraits of individual flowers (or a couple, in the case of the first photo), rather than trying to capture the expanse of water lilies in multiple ponds. There is something really peaceful and pure about water lilies that calms and soothes me and tends to put me into a contemplative mood.
I have returned from my short road trip to Massachusetts and Maine and am still feeling a bit of residual fatigue after spending almost twelve hours in my car yesterday. I hope to resume my normal posting schedule with some new photos soon. Thanks to all of you who have continued to read some of my older postings while I have been mostly absent from the internet this past week.
© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved.
Mike Powell 