Library Libations

Seeking light, in art and knowledge

By Kristin Amaral
Posted 6/12/17

I studied art and photography in college. I’ll be showing my age to any young readers out there when I say that I started in the darkroom. I learned a lot about photography in school, …

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Library Libations

Seeking light, in art and knowledge

Posted

I studied art and photography in college. I’ll be showing my age to any young readers out there when I say that I started in the darkroom. I learned a lot about photography in school, especially in the stacks at the library. I obsessively studied compositions by famous photographers. I tried to absorb everything my professors taught me. But what one professor said really stayed with me. She said, “photography is about one thing and one thing only — light.” If you follow light you might just gain a new perspective. She was right.

Now that I don't have the time to shoot as often, I totally understand what she meant. Finding inspiration from a subject is tedious and sometimes a chore. When I am home reading a book and notice the sun’s rays slowly dancing across the floor, I cannot resist the urge to take out my camera. Floors are purely functional and uninteresting. I charge across them everyday and never notice them. But they are so beautiful bathed in sunlight. Photography is incredibly magical to me.

    I’ve never really taken what I consider a “pretty” picture, simply because I never seek a pretty subject. Rather, I pursue light on a surface. When I visit Blithewold mansion, I walk the grounds for hours, looking for inspiration. Most photographers are busy hunting for a perfectly bloomed flower. But not me. Chances are you’ll find me photographing overgrown moss whose color is intensified by the sun.

    I often wish everyone had the opportunity to study art so they could take the time to see the beauty in everything. And I don’t mean scrolling through your Instagram feed. In this fast paced world, I find there are very few things that can truly capture my attention or inspire me to see something from a different perspective. Besides photography, the only other thing in this world that can change my point of view is a book. How amazing that I can read a book and my life will forever be changed by words on a page. Don’t deny there has been at least one story or character from a book that forever stays with you.

I love memoirs. There is nothing more inspiring than reading about those who triumphed over adversity or who have learned from their mistakes. It takes guts to admit to your mistakes and share them with the world! Authors are wonderful storytellers. Authors are our teachers outside of school. They share information with us and we use that information to learn about ourselves or to make the world a better place. What’s even more amazing is I can walk into any public library and get this information and these stories for free. In a world where greed and low morale run rampant, I take great relief in the fact that libraries are there for me. They are constant in an ever-changing society. For years librarians have celebrated banned books because they believe in the importance of making information available to everyone as a basic human right. Librarians are truth seekers, information scientists and sometimes heroes.

    I’ve learned a lot in my life thus far. Photography has taught me to seek light and consider a new perspective. Books have taught me a great deal — how to repair my car, sew curtains, save for retirement and even how to love. And none of that would have ever been possible without asking a librarian how to look.

Kristin Amaral is the information and technology associate at Rogers Free Library

Kristin Amaral

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