First Impressions

For those of you who've been following this blog for a while, you'll recognize Scissored from my Phantoms series that I posted last summer while exhibiting at Art Sites. For the first time since launching this blog (two years ago this month!), I'm posting the same image a second time. And here's why.
This month I began to help the editor at my local Patch.com curate a new column called First Impressions. If you click on that title, you'll see Scissored featured there as well.
It's a new weekly showcase for artists in the Westhampton-Hampton Bays area where Patch readers can view artwork and post their impressions upon seeing it for the first time. Then, the following week the artist posts what he/she was thinking when the piece was created. So take a look and write a comment. It's a wonderful way to start a dialogue and learn about art!
And we're looking for local artists to participate, so if you're interested or know anyone who is, write to me at meryl@merylspiegel.com or leave your e-mail address below. There's a chance we might expand the column to other Patch editions, so if you live anywhere on the East End of Long Island and would like to contribute, let me know.

Isle of Palms

One of the many wonderful things that I discovered on my road trip down south is that you can bike on the beach! Because the sand is so fine, there's a wide swath of shoreline packed down almost as hard as concrete.
Here's one of my new Phantoms photographed on the Isle of Palms, a strip of land about 30 minutes from Charleston, South Caroline, where I stayed with a friend. And here she is speeding along, disappearing into the dusk...
I've yet to name this one so if any of you have an idea, let me know by commenting below.

Savannah

After more than two weeks on the road, I've returned with about 200 images to edit for my Phantoms series. But before I get down to work, I'm posting this image of the Spanish moss that hangs over Savannah like a veil of protection preserving its history and its unrelenting charm.
Despite the trendy shops and internet cafes scattered about, I was enchanted by the gothic architecture, welcoming verandas, and the city's 22 squares arranged in a simple grid. And it didn't take long before Phantoms began to appear; I soon learned that the city is indeed haunted by thousands buried in mass graves due to two devasting fires in 1796 and 1820 and a yellow fever epidemic around the same time.
Ironically, this image was taken on a bike ride in Bonaventure Cemetery. Built on a plantation just outside the city, it's known as one of the most beautifully haunting in the county.