Modern Haiga

For those of you who are not familar with what Haiga is here is a quote that may be able to shed some light on the subject. "Traditional haiga consists of a handmade image, haiku, and calligraphy in the classical Japanese tradition. Historically a haiga was done as woodblock printmaking, and brush-and-ink painting. Haiga is marked by truth, beauty, simplicity, and modesty. Everyday occurrences, as well as universal truths can be expressed in a piece that makes wise use of space and form. The image and haiku must be blended artistically so that together the two are more enhanced than they would be if they stood alone." (see TRADITIONAL HAIGA Aurora Antonovic, Editor of Simply Haiku)

Seeing how the world is ever changing I decided to try a modern version of presenting a Haiga using some internet technology from Slide.com. By the way they provide some of the greatest tools for presenting visual media in a blog setting. Slide.com also has a way of linking a your presentation to music! But at this time they provide no way to up load personal mp3 sound files. By adding an individual image for each line of the haiku there is a progression of words into a single vision or piece of work. Sound will add one more dimension to the Haiga to communicate an already rich experience.

Let me know what you think about the Haiga slide show...enjoy!

On Imagination in Haiku

Found this quote concerning imagination and the development of Haiku at Dhugal J. Lindsay's Haiku Universe. Hope the haiku present on this site can attain the 50% threshold.

If a haiku is made (through the imagination) rather than experienced it can often be easily understood logically. Haiku are not supposed to be fully understood logically.

A quote from Otsuji (Seki Osuga)

"If one does not grasp something - something which does not merely touch us through our senses but contacts the life within and has the dynamic form of nature- no matter how cunningly we form our words, they will give only a hollow sound. Those who compose haiku without grasping anything are merely exercising their ingenuity. The ingenious become only selectors of words and cannot create new experiences from themselves."

From "Ostuji hairon-shuu" (Otsuji's collected essays on haiku theory) ed. by Toyo Yoshida, 5th ed. Tokyo: Kaede Shobo, 1947, p. 18.

If 90% of a haiku can be understood it is a good haiku.

If 50-60% can be understood it is wonderful.

This kind of haiku we never tire of.

Going Over the Mountain

Birds of all shapes and sizes migrate quite regularly in Alaska throughout the year. I’ve spent many an hour watching them feeding, playing, and striving about. With that in mind I decided to put together a visual experience that would capture these moments. Sort of a wordless haiku; if that is possible?

As you watch the slide show be sure to click on the sound track ‘Going Over the Mountain ' (Yamagoe) which is played by Alcvin Takegawa Ramos a well known Shakuhachi Teacher & Performer. This musical piece was chosen to accompany the slide show as it is interpreted in Japanese as, overcoming the most difficult part of a task in some way or other.

Please note that none of the photos are mine. Enjoy!

wishes

gathering

neighbors

chapel

snowshoes

cat naps