Art Wednesday
I love lighthouses - I find them amazing structures so for this Wednesday I am going to share with you my love of lighthouses. Architecturally they could be described as a work of art and I am sure when Smeaton was designing Eddystone lighthouse and thinking of oak trees he saw the beauty in these life saving structures. And that is the point of a lighthouse - to save lives and many many men, women and children have been save by that light shining out to sea.
I am particularly fascinated by those lighthouses built on rocks out at sea (2 examples below) - these are amazing engineering feats but as you will see with Bell Lighthouse, built so well it has never been rebuilt. They didn't have computers or other fancy technology - just an idea ,a dream and hard working men who risked their lives to build them.
I am particularly fascinated by those lighthouses built on rocks out at sea (2 examples below) - these are amazing engineering feats but as you will see with Bell Lighthouse, built so well it has never been rebuilt. They didn't have computers or other fancy technology - just an idea ,a dream and hard working men who risked their lives to build them.
Eddystone lighthouse stands 14kms south west of Rames Head in Britain. The first lighthouse on the rock was built in 1696 using timber (wow), the 2nd in 1709, the 3rd lighthouse in 1759, which was replaced by the 4th and final lighthouse in 1882. The 3rd lighthouse by Smeaton was modeled on the oak tree with foundations under the water, too strong for the Victorians to remove and the base can still be seen today. The helipad has been added in more recent times which sort of ruins the architecture of the building.
Bell lighthouse is the world's oldest surviving sea-washed lighthouse and was built on Bell Rock in the North Sea, 12 miles (18 km) off the coast of Angus, Scotland. I watched a documentary of the building of Bell and it was an incredible story of endurance - can you image what it was like stuck out in the middle of the ocean working on a rock? It commenced in 1807 and took 3 years to complete. The crew could only work on the rock for 4 hours per day otherwise it was covered in 12 foot of water. For a time they lived on a wooden platform built on the rock so they didn't need to travel backwards and forwards the rock each day from their ship.
Lighthouses have been captured by painters and photographers alike (famous/amateur), authors have romanticized them, making them places of boyhood adventures, even the cat has joined in the with tales of heroism. How many people have wanted to become lighthouse keepers after reading a romantic novel? Me!! Below are some of my favourite paintings.
Lighthouse at Two Lights by Edward Hopper (1882 - 1967)
Nubble Light by Douglas Brega (1996)
Rainbow Fleet by Lowell Herrero
These last two I am not sure of the artist but aren't they so much fun.
Nothing romantic about that - it would be a nightmare being inside!!
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I particularly love those two floral ones - they are SO beautiful!! I love coastal scenes and lighthouses.
ReplyDeleteYea, I love the floral ones too:)
ReplyDeleteI also love lighthouses, they make for great photography don't they?:)
Beautiful! Lighthouses at night, in stormy sea, is such a beautiful picture of our Lord too!
ReplyDeleteThese are gorgeous. The last two look a little like Thomas Kinkade but not quite sure.
ReplyDeleteI hopped on over from Amanda's Secret Garden. I read your comment to her post about fathers. You are not alone. Althuogh I grew up in a Christian home, I married an unbeliever because I was not born again until two years AFTER I was married. Why God did not open my eyes before or why my heart was not ready before, I used to question. Now I know that God had a plan all along. It is through me that my husband, the first in his family line, has known the truth and the Gospel. No, he is not a church-goer or a Bible reader, but after being married for 25 years, he is my best friend on earth and I can see more fruit in him than in a lot of Christians I know. One thing which helped tremendously was years ago when God led me to begin speaking of him and treating him as exactly what I wanted. I took the focus off of me. Now, even when I speak about him to others, I speak and I write what I see through God's eyes and what God is shaping and molding vs. the what is missing. That has changed my attitude tremendously. Before I lived under the disappointment of unmet expectations and regret. Now I know that God is molding all of us and I have a choice--enjoy the ride or be miserable through it. I don't think I would have grown as much without this and it has given me a tremendous compassion for women who you see so often alone with children at hand in church. I was there. Now, I am where my husband is. If he's home, that is my first and foremost ministry. If I'm asked if he's a Christian, I reply that I have learned not to answer that for anyone but myself because the heart is quiet a mystery to man.
Hope this helps. I look forward to staying in touch and promise my comments won't always be this long. ;)
We love lighthouses too. We've been to all of the public ones (and a couple private) on Michigan's Lower Peninsula coast, and maybe 1/2 of those on the Upper Peninsula coast. Many of them are owned by local historical groups that staff them in the summer with volunteer keepers - people who care for the building and staff the little museums in exchange for the privilege of being able to live there for a few weeks. Though I'm only 26 I've already planned to do this in retirement someday! Lighthouses are so wonderful and so unique, compared to other types of architecture.
ReplyDeleteOne Heart - You have no idea how good it was to hear from you (a total stranger!) that understands what it is like to be married to a non-believer. I am sure there are many of us, but it isn't something we chat about. I often get cross at God for allowing this to happen - but my wanderings and bad choices have lead me straight back to the Lord, through my errors I have learnt faith, trust, patience and joy - I have remained married even though divorce is the easy option, becuase if I get divorced it would mean I do not trust in the Lord. Most people would not understand this at all.
ReplyDeleteI came across an excellent book called "Unbelieving Husbands - the neglected harvest" by Ann M. Velia. It is as if she is writing just for me as the experiences that she talks about are my experiences so I can relate to them 100%. I plan to do a book review on it as it is so good.
Better go - bed time - thanks so much for dropping by - God planned this meeting, to finally meet someone who understands.
God Bless.
I love lighthouses, too! As you know, we spent our 3rd anniversary at one, as well as our honeymoon. There is just something so wonderful about them. I also like Hopper's paintings, so a double whammy for me!
ReplyDeleteThe comments by you and by "One Heart" have added grace to my heart. Women like you both who share and are so generous are inspirations to me. THANK YOU!
This is the beauty of blogging world... when encouragement comes to one another, even from total strangers! Thank You Lord, that you send encouragement and fellowship, right to where we are at, to our hearts. We all have crosses to bear, and how sweet it is to meet another who carries a somewhat similiar cross... it makes carrying the load all the the easier to bare.
ReplyDeleteOh Jo - I love lighthouses - simply adore them and LOVE to take pictures of them! Your photos are beautiful - each of them so amazing. I think that lighthouses are steeped in so much history - that amazes me also. We have a lighthouse not far from our condo at Cape Canaveral Florida - and it is always so amazing for me to see it - even from a distance.
ReplyDeleteLOVE this post!
vicki
Amanda - I have met wonderful Christian ladies, many more than I have meet face-to-face. It is so wonderful to share or troubles as we don't feel quite so alone. Thankyou for your lovely comments.
ReplyDeleteVal, I would love to go on a lighthouse tour - it would be so much fun.