The leaves are falling. In the heat of summer (here in the UK) there was talk that Autumn would be very early and could be over by the end of September. Ha! Wrong! Despite the heat and the lack of rain, Autumn seems to be on a very typical schedule, it turns out.
The leaves are falling – actually that is a rather bland description of what happens. Leaves don’t fall: they tumble, they pirouette, they somersault, they twist and turn, they float, they fly, they are blown. Eventually, gravity wins, and they land: sometimes for good, but quite commonly only to be moved again by the wind. Ultimately they are grounded and they occupy a space relative to other leaves; not necessarily leaves from the same tree, or even the same genus. They are just THERE. By chance. They become part of the leaf litter. And this year’s project, for me, is to examine the leaf litter and find nature’s compositions. And so, natives of my neighbourhood will find me examining the ground, identifying a clutch of leaves and removing intrusive elements to reveal a composition. That composition is always about subtraction, not about re-arrangement or addition of elements. It is a process of ‘reveal’.
How this will develop, and how far I will get with it – heaven knows! It’s time-consuming and subject to the vagaries of the weather, but here is a starter for today, found a couple of days ago. Others will follow, I hope.
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I love your description of the way leaves ‘fall’…I could watch those pirouettes forever. The season has been so dry though it’s sad to see so many leaves already like crunchy cornflakes underfoot, never having had the chance to turn colour. I wonder what winter will bring?
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Thanks very much Mary. I like the term ‘crunchy cornflakes’. So true this year. When leaves finally hit the ground they usually stay flat for a day or two, but the absence of rain means that if they are not crinkled before they fall, they very rapidly become so – and that doesn’t help the photography!
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Such beauty in autumnal leaves, the variety of colours different each year.
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Very true, Paula. Spring used to be my favourite season, but Autumn is now taking its place. It’s multi-coloured and multi-dimensional and it lingers on into winter as the leaf litter slowly decays. There’s so much to enjoy.
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What a wonderful description of how leaves “tumble, pirouette, somersault, twist and turn, float, fly” and finally fall. I will be very keen to see any and all leaf-composition experiments you care to share, Andy. I find the one above especially beautiful because of its combination of dynamic movement and stillness.
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Thanks very much Heide. I’ve just posted No 2 in the series. Always good to have a ‘project’ to concentrate one’s mind. Inevitably people stop and look and scratch their heads and wonder what the heck I am up to – it comes with the territory as the saying goes!
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I take it as an excellent sign when people are puzzled by what I’m doing, Andy — because it means I’m not doing the exact same old thing as everyone else. Plus, it’s nice to give them something to talk about on their way home. 🙂
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I just have a little silent laugh, because I know I’m seeing things that those folk can’t see – and that makes me the winner!
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I love your synonyms for leaf-falls. It’s the difference between saying something is blue, or saying it’s turquoise, or azure, or navy, or lapis.
‘Tumbler’ is especially appropriate here, since its early meaning was ‘to perform as an acrobat,’ or ‘to fall down.’ That did lead me to wonder how drinking glasses came to be known as ‘tumblers.’ According to the Online Etymology Dictionary, “the meaning of tumbler as a “drinking glass” is recorded from 1660s: originally a glass with a rounded or pointed bottom which would cause it to “tumble,” and thus it could not be set down until it was empty.” How about that?
Your tumbled leaves are beautiful. While I enjoy New England’s flaming reds and yellows, I think these are just as lovely, and their accidental background works perfectly.
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I like the way you find an unusual slant, or aside, to what I post. I just said to my wife: ‘do you know the origin of the word ‘tumbler?’ only to discover that only a few days ago she was actually reading about what that word originally meant. One of those extraordinary coincidences of life!
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Your narrative is great, and the image has an unusual somber feeling that can fit autumn just as well as the intense colors one often associates with the season. I like what you said about revealing the composition, too, and I look forward to seeing more of these.
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Thanks Lynn. It’s one of the joys of Autumn that it is not just about the vivid colours of the season but also the story of decay. And sometimes they rub shoulders with each other. Just posted the next in the series.
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