Night Heron

HI John,

Thanks for your kind and thoughtful critique. Quite right that the use of radial symmetry is nothing new in art. Used by artists for centuries, it goes to the very root of our perception. For example, it's why we think flowers are beautiful. It's one of the archetypal compositional patterns that conveys peace, serinity and, yes, a sense of the infinite.

My technique is decievingly more complicated than it looks. I use some custom software to create "a circle within a square" that is more than just a circular kaleidoscopic image.

Look for more to come....

I am very curious about Ansen Seale’s process in creating "Night Heron". The mirroring effect could be accomplished using a lens filter, but I find it more likely the original image was digitally altered. Regardless of his method, the mirroring result most attracts me to the photo. The exact geometric looping of the heron and its abstracted surroundings are familiar to those of us who played around with iPhoto and Photo Booth in the early 2000s. Even though this optical trick is well established in our visual lexicons, it continues to intrigue and excite. I contend that the sustained interest in this circular mirroring imagery comes from humanity’s fascination with the infinite. Like Llanes’ endless rollercoaster, there is no beginning or end to "Night Heron". Instead, it loops around ad infinitum defying our expectations of the finite. Only the impossible interests people more than the possible, and the impossible can only be described in art. To escape the prison of the possible, we must surround ourselves with art.