Today’s On The Easel is an infant’s portrait in natural light.
Very small infants are absolutely lovely while they observe their world around them. They truly embody the innate energy of innocence and presence
and the ‘beginners mind’ that so many major religions seek as wisdom.
I’d love to help record the fresh faces of newborns, toddlers and early youth that changes so quickly (don’t we moms know!)
Let’s talk about how to make yours special.
Seen at different times of the day,
the art in your home engages and influences your energy.
Like arranging feng shui elements in a home
bringing flowing good energy into life activities,
your art has other metaphysical abilities in addition to decoration.
A life missions’ purpose in the morning, inspiration in the afternoon,
or a satisfying sense of legacy relaxing in the evenings.
I have had clients hang their couples’ portrait in their kitchen
where they contemplate their relationship
in the private early morning time before work.
Others hang child portraits eye-level,
raising confidence in photos of love
on the walls they pass every day.
Baby sized portrait books offer
a personalized bedtime storytelling experience.
Beauty created for both the eyes and spirit.
I would love to know if you have created
such zones of energy in your home in this manner.
It is easy but intentional. Contact me to create this ‘flow’ of energy
whether with my custom portraits or your own.
Dorothy Perry, Contact or https://dorothyperry.com/contact/.
Follow me (Thank you!) and subscribe to my newsletter.
This jaunty derby
was an essential part
of this young man’s daily outfit
for school for a time.
We artistic types recognize
what courage it takes and what it costs
to be so different in this world.
This tiny picture fragment from long ago
becomes a testament to childhood’s beautiful, original spirit.
Dorothy Perry documents childhood at all ages. Contact her to photograph a loved one here. Consider yourself a loved one, too.
This just seemed like yesterday.
You can’t stop them from growing;
but you can stop time.
The lazy afternoons of childhood
are preserved by the warmth of sunlight,
the immediacy of memory,
and joyous moments at play.
I specialize in personal photojournalism
made into photo stories and books.
Lets’ meet throughout Chicagoland
and great parks near you.
Dorothy Perry is a mom, grandmom, and artistic photographer of childhood in the Chicagoland area. Lets talk at perryportraitart@gmail.com or through the Contact Page here.
To witness the moment in photographs.
To record the beautiful grace of infancy.
To remember the elders, travelling to see their new young one.
To document time, place, and reality for the future.
To make good energy visible for the home.
To celebrate the two, becoming three.
To honor the spirit of family.
This is why.
If I can help record your family legacy with fine lifestyle portraits, I welcome your inquiry at http://www.dorothyperry.com/contact/.
Love what you’ve done!
These words usually accompany a new hairdo or living room design.
But this was the response from a father, freshly grieving the loss of his only son,
viewing what I created from the candid image he sent me.
These natural words really meant a lot to me on an emotional level,
knowing what this picture meant to him.
I love what I do
in creating something personal and special for those who are bereaved:
remembering and honoring their loved ones in contemplative art.
If this idea ‘sparks’ a feeling for the need
to see a treasured photo transformed into a memorial portrait,
I would love to help make it a reality.
May your loved one’s memory be a blessing.
Dorothy Perry creates purposeful portraits in beautiful daylight. Contact her here.
Be seen.
Schedule a time at your home for a really good photo of your family –
and enjoy it every day afterwards.
Dorothy Perry creates purposeful portraits in beautiful daylight. Contact her here.
Within the mindset that what we do for others, we are working on in ourselves, I see the actions I am taking to help someone grow
are the things that are my struggle to grow with as well.
My son and I have been a tight pair since he was born. He was not an easy boy to raise
after vaccinations caused developmental regression at an important stage of life.
School, Aspergers, socialization, therapy: we had our roles: I was his cheerleader and advocate, tried to anticipate issues, ease him into trying new things –
and dust myself off when well-meaning experiments sometimes went south (I actually wrote some pretty good poetry about this period of time.)
Over time, I came to realize that some of these well-meaning efforts ‘bubble-wrapped’ him
against the work he needed to do to stand on his own feet…
Steps he needed to take himself.
I realize to be an advocate of his independence in this new stage of life, I needed to step back and let him
make his own decisions,
set new expectations,
disagree with me,
fix his own dinner,
handle his finances,
figure out his own schedules,
make his own mistakes.
Old habits die hard, and being a ‘helicopter mom’ was second nature for twenty years.
It’s still hard sometimes not to take the wheel for him when he is working things out.
But this is the work towards a measure of independence that we both have to do in our own lives.
It has taken longer in time than some young adults need, but that is what it took. It takes different types of strategies and preparations, and some hand-holding,
but that is what it takes as well.
And with extra time, reassurance and ‘figure it out yourself’,
I see that he is more assured, trying his wings, making short flights.
And succeeding.
One thing, though never changes.
I have a little ritual in the mornings, where I watch him walking to work in the crowds, as far as I can see him, until he is out of sight.
And then, saying ‘thank you’ in tears of gratitude
for the marvel of a young man walking down the street to work –
a vision that looks so everyday and ordinary,
but is evidence of beautiful, positive growth that has happened in ours.
Update of sorts: the time at home over Covid and the preparation to return to work caused some anxiety we could not manage or assuage, and in time he left the firm.
I am creating our schedules with more attention
on doing the things he does here at home himself
to take responsibility, care for himself, and figure things out.
All as quietly as he usually does things.
No matter what it looks like from the outside,
I have dreams of this next step and germinating it
until it is strong enough to flower.
Dorothy Perry is a Chicago portrait photographer.
