LETTER FROM THE
EDITOR
As I write this, I am sailing away from Australia, my
doorstep for the last nine months, leaving her sadly
behind in my wake. But my spirits are buoyed with
the anticipation of the beauty waiting for me on
my next doorstep, Indonesia. For the best part of
traveling the world by sailboat is that ‘wherever I go, I
am home’; only my doorstep keeps changing.
My love of Gaia has transported me from the confines
of a three-walled, one windowed office out onto the
open ocean with endless possibilities. To date, my
sailing circumnavigation has taken me to 21 countries
from The Netherlands to Australia, across The Atlantic
and Pacific Oceans, and just this month, into the
Indian Ocean.
Gaia has delivered marvels the entire way from
sweeping landscapes filled with mountains, volcanoes,
waterfalls, sand dunes, wetlands, savannahs and
many, many palm trees to underwater gardens rich
in colorful coral and brimming with penguins, turtles,
fish, sea lions, dolphins, whales, sharks and crocodiles.
But a big lesson that I’ve learned on this sailing
journey is that some of the best adventures and
greatest beauty were available to me just steps from
my office door. I only had to open it once in awhile
and walk outside. I look forward to returning to my
homeports in Chicago and New York someday to
explore those landscapes more deeply.
This month’s On Your Doorstep Magazine features
many amazing artists who have successfully carved
out time to celebrate their own doorsteps and to
share that beauty with us.
Colin Southgate Colin takes us along on his journey
through the Magic of Macro using pressed flower
photography as an expansive form of creative
expression. The results are magnificent.
Allan Hamilton is a freelance graphic artist, illustrator,
photographer and art blogger based in Hamilton,
Ontario Canada, who uses art to remind us that
‘nature is a fun place of adventure and discovery
that is wonderfully nostalgic and healing’. His latest
photography project, Arboretum Virtualis, deftly
captures nature’s mysterious and inviting beauty
through black & white tree, forest and grove portraits.
LISA
DORENFEST
David Foster is a fine art nature photographer
born in New York, now living in Atlanta. David
has a special interest in the emerging focus on
the healing power of nature and nature-based art/
photography.
Karen Henderson is a textile artist based in the
United States. Her work reflects her wide-ranging
interests and the nature that is around her. She
combines different dying techniques with sewing
and weaving.
Lexie Klein. Is a US based travel photographer and
blogger with an insatiable itch to see the world,
preferably on foot. She has visited six continents,
nearly fifty countries, and much of the U.S. Here
she shares with us a series of her breathtaking
images from her home base.
Teresa Asman. Continuing our theme of celebrating
inner city green spaces, Teresa Asman. a Canadian
based author and photographer shares the
remarkable beauty on her doorstep in Port Alberti,
British Columbia, through her words and images.
Tsvetomir Iliev is a self taught Bulgarian artist,
Tsvetomir combines small pieces of fallen tree bark
and acrylic paint to show us beauty in the hidden
complexities of nature
Olivier Leger is a multi award-winning artist who
has been creating surreal, imaginative drawings
exploring ecology, biology and nature since 2013.
He’s inspired by his curiosity of the world and the
universe.
And in our Project’s Section, On Your Doorstep is
excited to bring you an interview with Adam Pollak,
the brain behind Closed Loop Farms. A community
based network of farms in the Chicagoland area,
Closed Loop Farms has transformed urban blight
into a resilient local food ecosystem that bridges
the gap between farm and consumer.
The wind is picking up so I will leave you here to
enjoy the contents of Issue 2 of On Your Doorstep
Magazine while I go and trim the sails.
Written At Sea 26 July 2016