free at last

Artist: blackoutangel
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free at last

A brief candle; both ends burning
An endless mile; a bus wheel turning
A friend to share the lonesome times
A handshake and a sip of wine
So say it loud and let it ring
We are all a part of everything
The future, present and the past
Fly on proud bird
You’re free at last.

- written by Charlie Daniels, en route to the funeral for his friend, Ronnie Van Zant of the band, Lynyrd Skynyrd.
—-—-—-—-—-—-—--
all rights reserved. photo taken at teton state hospital.
more of my work is available at www.abandonedamerica.org

free at last belongs to the following groups:

All Things Poetic, Prose, Philosophical., Art Inspired by Dreams, Dilapidated Buildings, HDR Photography, Parallel Dimensions, Practising the Dark Arts, Rusty, Crusty and Falling to Bits, The Urban Environment, Vibrant and Vivid Color and Windows and Doors

Caren Schwartz, 3 months ago

WOW.
Dave Miller, 3 months ago

love this, great light & comp. – the chair seems so strong – excellent work
JimFilmer, 3 months ago

excellent- lighting is briiliant
basia, 3 months ago

Good as a composition…
budrfli, 3 months ago

wow! love the writing and art together they complement each other perfectly! seeing them togehter adds to the art. , and this piece stands on it’s own! i might add
ericseyes, 3 months ago

Nice, I could see this as a nice painting also!
Jennifer Vickers, 3 months ago

Great words to a fantastic image. Love how nature is ocming to claim this old place.
Tambala, 3 months ago

Have just looked at your myspace slideshow. Amazing work, of which this is just one. Really powerful images
Glenn-Patrick ..., 3 months ago

I love this Matt.I know a pretty simple critique, but I just love it.
Robert Mullner, 3 months ago

Brilliantly composed…couldn’t stop looking at this one…so atmospheric, it tells a story…
Russell Fry, 3 months ago

terrific image and great text to accompany it…
RosaCobos, 3 months ago

You know how the Saint and Prophetisa, Scientis, Musicien, and Healer of the 11 centurry called this force that Nature has for greening Life into anything… and transcending all time and decay?... “Viriditas”
This picture is the perfect and poeetic show of what Viriditas is… and the light it emanates from the plants and door is healing the decay and giving a new scent to the room.. I love the treatment you have made in this photo full of love and recognition for things as they are…
Rosa
Carlos Teófilo, 3 months ago

Superb work Blackoutangel.
RosaCobos, 3 months ago

Great hommage ..
I love the idea “a brief candle… both ends burning…”
Ah… sorry I have realized that the such “door” is really a Window… even more interesting..mmm.
Rosa
SinisterDragon, 3 months ago

I love the image it drew me in with the dark and loneliness and the window scene was superb with the freedom to fly and then the poetry sang to my soul. Beautifully done. Words and all
Helene Kippert, 3 months ago

Stunning – I love the words too
nannamanson, 3 months ago

Wonderful photo and wonderful words.
amarica, 3 months ago

Love your work
justlinda, 3 months ago

The greenery through the door caught my eye here. Great photograph, the writing is a perfect accompaniment!.
blackoutangel in reply to budrfli’s comment, 3 months ago

thank you for saying so. while i did not write the accompanying text in this instance i am very selective about what goes with a picture. it is important to me that the photo/text reflect each other in some way, and i hope that by doing so they add up to more than the sum of their parts. sometimes i think i succeed, sometimes not, but it’s interesting to experiment either way :)
blackoutangel in reply to Tambala’s comment, 3 months ago

thanks! i appreciate you taking time to check that out. my myspace account generally gets things first, but my website is much more comprehensive. that slideshow feature on myspace is pretty cool, though :)
blackoutangel in reply to RosaCobos’s comment, 3 months ago

Rosa,

thanks for the fascinating note. you mentioned something i always wished i had words for, and it is a concept i have researched afteryour note and plan to integrate into my future work. i have seen many places where this cleansing is going on, and have often felt that some places have such a bad history that perhaps they need time to be purged and forgiven. i also agree very strongly that there is a sense of love in the reclamation, as though nature is welcoming the site back in an embrace of ivy and weeds. it’s a hard thing to translate, but while there is a certain sorrow and loneliness to these places, i have never felt frightened as much as i do at peace and in awe. i owe you one for teaching me about this and appreciate the depth of your understanding.

- matthew
blackoutangel in reply to SinisterDragon’s comment, 3 months ago

thank you – i think it is one of the more beautiful poems i’ve read, especially given the reason it was written (the loss of a friend). i see the chair on the left as symbolic of the forlorn, restrictive existence that patients suffered in this asylum, and the leafy window at right as the release i hope they found – and that this building itself is finding as it slowly falls apart. there are no more bars on the windows or locked doors now and i believe that this is the process of the site being freed from its own tumultuous past that Rosa mentioned a few comments up.
GINGER BARRITT, 3 months ago

It’s a wonderful photograph. Amazing what emotion art can pull forth. Thank you.
PPPhotoArt, 3 months ago

very emotional image with very beautiful poetry!!!!!
johnr, 3 months ago

superb image.
Catherine Davis, 2 months ago

Gorgeous work, so beautiful
dimarie, 2 months ago

eeriely beautiful!
and so lonely…
Makeba Kedem-D..., 2 months ago

What a peaceful and visually poetic place. I really love this. peace…
Anne Staub, about 1 month ago

Beautiful image!