Conosco i Signi de l’Antica Fiamma.

Agnosco veteris vestigial flammae. Probably the only line I remember from Virgil’s works. It translates into “I recognize the traces of an ancient fire” as Dido feels passion again when she meets the Trojan hero Aeneas in Virgil’s Aeneid.
I have always liked this line, and also like its Italian version as Dante used it in the Divine Comedy. It reads “Conosco i signi de l’antica fiamma.”

… My photography is a visual validation of what I have learned from other forms of art and artistic expression. Poetry is what I have always cherished as the purest form of universal expression. But when my eye sees a scene, I convince the eye of my camera lens to understand it and place it within a certain context of artistic expression.

To recognize the vestiges of ancient flames, or at least one ancient flame, takes two. At least.
So, here are a few examples of how I cherish capturing the universal expression of remembering through the eyes of living creatures that surround me.

Deer: This mama deer was near my house a few days ago. I grabbed my camera and got as close as I could with my 1970s Nikkor –P Auto 180mm lens. She did not move and kept looking at me with almost a comfort look.

Then her baby came to join. Now I understood why she was not running away. And they both looked at me for a short moment.

Peccary (Javelina): This herd was also near my house. I took a few photos by getting very close to them but on my guard because the males do attack and they have long fangs! I like this photo of the two javelin heads mixing into a unit, again with a comfortable look.

Hummingbirds: It is practically impossible to freeze a hummingbird in flight using a mechanical camera like a Nikon F2. I just do not have fast enough speed and lends to do so. But the movement can give shadows and make us think. These two were on the bird feeder and I tried to capture their flight. The hummingbird at the lower plane seems to have an interesting look…

My dog with his friend: I took this one in a small New England town where he used to visit this lady and get a tasty treat. Again, I wanted to capture that comfort in expression I like to freeze in time.

So, how does one recognize the traces and signes of ancient flames? Although Virgil’s Dido needed a new passion to remember and recognize what she had found in her husband Sychaeus, I think that old flames give us a comfort rather than new burning passions.
And that comfort is in realizing that we had the privilege of living through old flames.

April 17, 2018
© Vahé A. Kazandjian, 2018