details diving paintings

new horizon

and a toe in the Red Sea.

New Horizon – literally and figuratively.

Let’s start with the easy part, with my toe almost in the Red Sea. And the story goes like this: I was considering creating a children’s book with abstract images. But that’s probably a pretty unusual idea anyway. One of the pictures I did would be of a party in the sea where the sea creatures invited children to join the fun. After the first study, a few more followed, in which I mainly tried to abstract the sea itself, fish, and divers themselves. The danger here is that it’s easy to become too complacent. So I’ve tried to stretch my abstractions quite far and focus on the entity.

details new horizon, diving paintings

Soon after, I realized that I really would need a few days of vacation. After careful consideration, it will now be 12 days at the Red Sea. I was there diving before but that was many years ago. Now I know that my biological clock will soon say: “Diving? You should have thought about that earlier!”: Well, earlier is now. And I look forward to the diving pleasure.

new horizon


If my conscience stirs, I can still use the excuse that it’s a “study visit”. What am I going to study? Fish – in the sea and in the pan 😊 But above all the idea of including a new horizon in my painting. In what way?


A few weeks ago I came across a meditation where you should practice the following: Imagine sitting on a high level and feeling the wide horizon in front of you. Easy. But then: “Imagine the wide horizon BEHIND you”. And then the horizon left and right. That changed a few things for me.

In what way? Well, I never paid much attention to the horizon behind me. Not to the side of me either. I became aware that when I paint, I see what is to be painted BEFORE me, like most of us. One concentrates on the composition, the colors, and the flow of power…. IN FRONT OF yourself, ON the screen, ON the paper. What if, while painting, I imagine being IN the middle of the action. Had I ever paid as much attention to the “horizon” behind me as to the one in front of me? Surely not.
That may sound a bit strange in and of itself, especially since you are of course working 2-dimensionally when painting. How can an additional horizon even come into play? [1].

The difference in this inner attitude immediately showed the first, small, successes. I probably see more in it than other viewers, as I’m biased, but I think it’s a good step that encourages work on it further.


study one

I’ve now started painting studies of what I’ll be seeing in the 2nd half of March 😊 It’s mostly about light and the feel of water (men and feelings – I hear you, ladies). The first work is more about the feeling of the first immersion in the water.

jump into the sea

Although there is no actual fish in any of the studies, I wanted to capture the feeling of “fish” – and of course water.

study two


The composition is similar to the first study, but now the light comes into play more prominently. Both seem pretty flat at first, but with the use of color, the light, and the creation of a small swath on the bottom right, an effect of depth is created – at least I hope so.

jump into the red sea


As far as the aspect of the horizon is concerned, I have included dark areas in the lower part that look like shadows. This suggests a light source behind the diver/viewer and thus a space behind it.

footnotes:

[1] Since the idea may still sound too vague, I would like to compare it with an example of listening. With early radios, we heard “mono”. A single speaker served as the sound source. Then came stereo and later surround. And I would like to have this feeling of “surround” in my pictures.
It doesn’t matter to me how feasible this is. I am not interested in whether my consideration of an additional horizon can be implemented, but tinkering with the idea, and exploring the possibilities attracts the corresponding.
Many are familiar with the term LOA (Law of Attraction) of the New Age movement. Even if I’m not necessarily a supporter of the esoteric, I pick out from this field what appeals to me. After LOA the merging into an idea entails its reflection in reality, which, as far as I know, cannot be scientifically proven.


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Comments

45 responses to “new horizon”

  1. J M Negi avatar

    Well crafted with a tremendous flow. Enjoyed it, Fred. Thanks.

    1. Zettl Fine Arts avatar

      Thank you so much ❤️ Let’s see what transpires. I have a lot of things in mind with this topic…

  2. Harshi avatar

    Astonishing! What an awesome idea and ofcourse the imagination runs wild when we dive under the sea! It’s one of the most memorable moments of my life!

    So happy for the book you’re creating. It’ll be even more exciting for the kids who live in the mountains and the hills!

    1. Zettl Fine Arts avatar

      Thank you very much! So far I only have a handful of illustrations for the children’s book. Not sure if I will go on. But I like the idea to provide a book for children with abstract illustrations.

  3. Spira avatar

    Impressive in more ways I can articulate; from Sarm(?) to the paintings to meditation.
    Absolutely beautiful.

    1. Zettl Fine Arts avatar

      Thank you so much! This means mauch to me. I am happy that the aspect of meditation can be seen too 🙂

      1. Spira avatar

        Please, be assured that it was not a generic comment. I am not in the habit of them.
        It is just the fact that I am lost for words right now.
        (Nancy has a trademark phrase for that!)

      2. Zettl Fine Arts avatar

        Thank you! I know – mine too was not generic 🙂 ….trademark …:) 🙂

  4. Kim avatar
    Kim

    What a great idea! A childrens book with abstract paintings:) they could learn to describe what they feel or what it means for them

    1. Zettl Fine Arts avatar

      Many many thanks! Yes I agree with you. Children have so much imagination and love to discover new things. That also encourages their creativity, I think. I’ll kidnap some kids first and see how they react to the works 🙂

  5. graham mcquade avatar

    Those, soft, lost and found edges create, for me, the quick movements of fish. There’s a rich vein of possibilities here Friedrich, over and above a children’s book.

    1. Zettl Fine Arts avatar

      Thank you very much, Graham! I’ll wait until I have more samples together untill I post on the idea of the children’s book.

  6. The Sicilian Storyteller avatar

    Biological clocks be damned! Enjoy that dive into the Red Sea and don’t give up on that children’s book. You may be delighted at how children interpret the abstract. Great post, Friedrich!

    1. Zettl Fine Arts avatar

      Thank you, Nancy! Clocks are not my favorite tools – biological or not 🙂 I hope it will be more fun to hear children’s interpretations than to draw 🙂

  7. swabby429 avatar

    The word “immersion” stuck out in your post today. Sitting atop of a mountain with a view of the horizon all around you is similar to immersion into the sea. Of course, we are always immersed in the ocean of air around us, so why not meditate upon the all encompassing horizon. I hope you enjoy your study visit.

    1. Zettl Fine Arts avatar

      Thank you! Yes, immersion is a key term. You understood my point in horizon absolutely correctly. Something to work on till I get old 😄

  8. Ashley avatar

    It’s an immersive experience, reading your posts! Thank you, Friedrich. Have a great weekend. 🙋‍♂️

    1. Zettl Fine Arts avatar

      Thank you so much, Ashley! You are very kind! Have a great weekend too! 🙋‍♂️

  9. Stacey C. Johnson avatar
    Stacey C. Johnson

    I love this so much, Friedrich. And as a parent I also adore the idea of a children’s book of abstract images based around the idea of being invited to a great party with sea creatures. I think children would find this delightful, refreshing, and gloriously familiar! (I know I would have). I also can appreciate it as a profound work of art “disguised” as a children’s book.

    1. Zettl Fine Arts avatar

      Thank you so much, Stacey, for your kind words! It’s funny, I almost didn’t want to mention it for fear it would be mildly smiled at – at best. But I get very positive reactions, like from you, and that sure will motivate me. But first the fish….. 🙂

      1. Stacey C. Johnson avatar
        Stacey C. Johnson

        It’s always the fish, isn’t it? Slippery creatures : )

    2. Zettl Fine Arts avatar

      It’s nice that you mention the term “slippery”. In my more recent works, “fish” appear. They’re largely abstract, but often don’t lend themselves to focus – slippery as they are…

      1. Stacey C. Johnson avatar
        Stacey C. Johnson

        : )

  10. Renee Espriu avatar

    I quite like both of these and look forward to where it will take you. It’s not often that one gets to look inside the mind of an artist.

    1. Zettl Fine Arts avatar

      Thanks very much, Renee! Sure, we never know where our path will lead us. But there are always flowers along the way. I am very pleased that you like the work and that you find something useable in my babble.

  11. Edith avatar

    Deine Bilder sind so lebhaft wie Kinder. Deren sprudelndes Lachen sind deine Farben. Und das Meditative taucht ab ins Meer. Da gibt es keine Ecken und Kanten. Sicher Seiten und auch Rückwärtiges. Und von oben dringt das Licht. Und manchmal reicht es nicht tief genug. Aber Leben gibt es allemal. Friedrich, deine Bilder sprechen – jedes Einzelne….
    Dir einen guten Abend mit herzlichsten Grüßen und Wünschen von mir ❤

    1. Zettl Fine Arts avatar

      Ich weiss gar nicht, wie ich mich bei Dir fuer Deine lieben Worte bedanken kann! Mehr noch freut es mich, dass Du sie so siehts, wie sie gedacht sind. Herzliche Gruesse und Wuensche zurueck!

      1. Edith avatar

        Du Lieber, dass du es annimmst ist mir Dank genug. Ich danke dir, dass ich so viel Schönes sehen und mit eigenen Gedanken bestücken darf. DANKE <3 Dir noch einen feinen Urlaub <3

  12. sandyroybessandbugzy avatar

    Such an interesting idea to see behind and all around then paint with that in mind. Enjoy your experience diving ( the red sea is great) and I am sure you will share it successfully with children . Taking them for a party where their imagination can be weightless. An interesting idea with paintings.

    1. Zettl Fine Arts avatar

      Thank you very much for your encouraging words and wishes! Everything should be fine. In the worst case, I can still ride a camel there….

  13. Rosaliene Bacchus avatar

    The abstract paintings for a proposed children’s book are beautiful. Perhaps they would introduce children to another way of viewing the world around them. Study Two of immersion in the sea is stunning in capturing the sensory perceptions of life before the sea surface.

    1. Zettl Fine Arts avatar

      Thank you very much Rosaliene! Yes, I think so too. I’ll be writing an article next week and sharing some of my thoughts on it. I’m glad you like the idea in general.

  14. Mike and Kellye Hefner avatar

    Stunning as always.

    1. Zettl Fine Arts avatar

      And you are kind as always, thanks! Enjoy your day!

  15. Adam avatar

    Great work

    1. Zettl Fine Arts avatar

      Thank you so much, Adam! Glad you like it 🙂

  16. Sue Grey-Smith avatar

    Wonderfully evocative work!

    1. Zettl Fine Arts avatar

      Many thanks! From the mouth of an artist, kind words count twice 🙂

  17. Abbas Anwar avatar

    zettl fine Arts i really like your work.

    1. Zettl Fine Arts avatar

      Thank you very much! I am glad you like it ☺️

  18. agndoden avatar

    If you are interested in light subject you can visit my blog or become a follower!chapitrelumiere.wordpress.com

  19. mitchteemley avatar

    The instant I saw these pieces, Friedrich, I felt like I was underwater. So evocative.

    1. Zettl Fine Arts avatar

      Thank you very much, Mitch!

  20. Marilyn Sue Meyers avatar

    Brilliant! :o)

    1. Zettl Fine Arts avatar

      Thank you very much 🌹😎🌼

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