Boundaries & Puzzles

Grateful for the edges of things

Hello from the land of jig-saw puzzles, landfills, and wonderings about limits…

and the power of the mundane to transport.

Last week black and white object images invited reflection on the idea of portals - - how a thing can be so much more than the thing itself (check out Boundaries, Housebound).

This week, it’s puzzles…of my photographs from the local landfill…that captivate.

Why was I so distracted by the red trunk (Title: Red Trunk, Discarded)?

How did I not see the colorful fabrics, basket weaving, and textures of wood?

Puzzle: Detail, Red Trunk, Discarded Photo by Lyn Swett Miller

In the land of fine art photography, images on a puzzle might seem blasphemous, and way too ordinary, but I’m starting to wonder if puzzles are the way to go.

When was the last time I really paid attention to the nuances of a soft blue sky with wisps of clouds?

…or to the true power of the blur to add texture and nuance to a scene?

What are the limits of our understanding of a thing?

Like a photograph: When does it shift from a postcard scene or family ‘snapshot’ to a work of art?

Is it the paper it’s printed on, the size of the print, or the way it’s framed?

Or is there an energy embodied in the image itself that communicates something to the viewer that says something different?

When framed on the wall as part of a gallery exhibition, these images from the landfill become art. When on a dining room table, cut into 345 pieces, and all mixed up, what does that image become?

In the flurry of the moment, when I created House Cleaning, Scrapped from the scrap metal pile, it was the texture of the fresh snow, the shapes - - in general - - and the stories embodied by the lone crutch and the yellow mop that caught my attention.

Puzzle: House Cleaning, Scrapped Photo by Lyn Swett Miller

Only when I started to handle the pieces from the initial pile on the table, though, did I see more - - the orange can, the red fire extinguisher, and the wire connecting the pieces.

Details acquire new meaning when disassociated;

Edges are grouped, though incoherent at first;

Colors and shapes long to be joined, but it’s not always obvious.

And what about the layers of metaphor and meaning that emerge, not just from the content of the image, but from the process of doing the puzzle itself?

The reminder that boundaries matter - - Once a problem is bounded, it can be figured out, one piece at a time;

The invitation to be patient - - For me, puzzles are not about how fast I can do it, but how long I sit with the pieces and let myself enjoy the puzzling;

And the sheer joy of sitting for hours with a single image and really getting to know it - - more intimately than I ever did when I first created the image, when I edited the image in Lightroom, when I printed it or even when I stood with it on a gallery wall.

It is this physical intimacy that inspires.

Why would I ever want to have an image on the wall again, when it could be something I can hold, manipulate, and really get to know?

Puzzle: Detail, House Cleaning, Scrapped Photo by Lyn Swett Miller

I am grateful for the edges of things - - the boundaries that contain a question or an object.

In the case of my work, and what makes a photograph art or not, and whether or not I even care, needs a boundary, or I will be paralyzed.

Exhibition Photograph, Gallery 3 @ AVA Spring 2023 Photo by Lyn Swett Miller

Here’s the question, though: What might be the possibilities for puzzles with purpose and meaning to inspire conversation about the meta climate puzzles we face?¹

Might interacting with these images be a more effective portal to understanding than seeing them on the wall or in a book?

What do you think?

Puzzle: Pollinators Photo by Lyn Swett Miller

As always, thank you for sharing this time and your space with me!

With gratitude for you being you,

Lyn

And look who’s back!!

Compost, Photos by Lyn Swett Miller

1. I’m considering using these puzzles as a fundraiser for a local organization that is tackling our region’s waste stream…and I’m excited about the idea of ‘Puzzles with a Purpose,’ but there’s always that artist’s voice wondering if I’m compromising…But when I get out of my head, my heart tells me that I might just be onto something.