I am always awed by members of an older generation embracing new media and technology, and wish I could do more to help those, like my grandparents, who literally fear computers and the internet. So when I first logged into “Watercolor, Pen, Photography & More” I was happy to find our author Jerry Dreesen is a 68 year old man from Indiana whose artistic skill must cause him some distress by the basic blogger template. On my screen width (1024 pixels) his beautiful images are too large for the table causing the right hand menu to obscure them.
Jerry’s website is just as the title states, an outlet for creative expression including some illustration, photography, haiku poetry and more. The artwork has a notably traditional Japanese feel, very minimalist and beautiful which I enjoy a lot. I’ll confess, I am a fan of this style. Some of the “photo-haiku” posts border on being a little sentimental but the shots are lovely and the poetry is easy to read.
The choice of black background is certainly intentional as it frames the artworks nicely, and true to the Japanese style the posts are single works of art and nothing more. No distracting monologue or waffly diatribe from young people confused and angry. On the contrary Jerry’s work is confident and peaceful. My only concern would be that the template design used for the site could be further reduced, header removed, distracting lines done away with. If the site design was as minimal as the work it displays, this unity would improve the overall feel tenfold.
An ancient practice
in a modern gallery
brings joy to us all.
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