Please join Synkroniciti in welcoming back poet and photographer Laura Rodley of Massachusetts with two photographs on the theme of “Dreams.” Scrub Trees reveals a dramatic, semi-arid landscape. A rock promontory rises above scrubby brush, capped by skeletal trees against a blue sky with light clouds. The way the trees come over the rock evokes a branching head and two arms, creating the illusion of a monster which is either conjoined to the rock or leering over it. The crumbling rock itself invites us to look for twisting figures. In dreams, we often find that images don’t evoke the same reaction they would in real life–that we feel love, revulsion, fear or other emotions because the subconscious mind uses images as symbols rather than actual objects–and we don’t always understand its codes. In Scrub Trees, Laura uses pareidolia, or the tendency to see definite patterns and resemblances in random places, to show how our minds free-associate and play with images. The search for subconscious insight drives our interest in art, religion and more.
Dreamcatcher” On My Way shows a knight (performer Bill Burch) charging on his horse, jousting lance raised high. Despite the time elapsed since knights in armor rode into battle, they remain powerful symbols in our consciousness, enmeshed with the hero archetype (although some knights have been villains). They are codes for athleticism, courage and honor. The subconscious–aided by fairy tales, fables, and stories–uses archetypes to identify traits and behaviors which may be useful in situations and communicate them to our conscious minds via dreaming and imagination. It’s important when dealing with archetypes to recognize no actual person is a perfect hero, villain, or sage. We are all composites and will present differently in varying circumstances.
View Laura’s fascinating images in Synkroniciti’s “Dreams” issue, available for purchase here: https://synkroniciti.com/the-magazine/purchase-individual-issues/.
Pushcart Prize winner Laura Rodley’s latest books are Turn Left at Normal by Big Table Press, Counter Point by Prolific Press, and Ribbons and Moths Poems for Children by Kelsay Books.