This is a collection of photographs I’ve taken over the past several years and poems that I wrote more than 25 years ago. It’s an experiment presenting younger and older points of view. How does the world look now compared to how it looked then? How can visual and written expression represent the same world view? Does one inform the other? Can you step into the same river twice?
Choosing these pieces was surprisingly difficult. I wanted this conversation between visual and verbal to be dynamic. I wanted some give and take between words and photos. I wanted the poems and images to remain independent of one another, yet stand comfortably together like familiar acquaintances.
Jean Stabell lives in western Massachusetts and has concentrated her creative interests in photography this past decade, following a long career in human service and non-profit organizations. She retired as treasurer of Five Colleges, Incorporated several years ago. Her photographs and poetry reveal her interest in the texture and unique quality of the New England environment. She has self-published three photographic collections, including The Barn Book, Mary’s Place and Wonderful Rotation.
