Eyðibýli

GUEST PHOTOGRAPHER: Vala Arnadóttir

Vala writes: On one of my trips last summer we found an old abandoned summer cottage by a beautiful lake called Hreðavatn in Borgarfjörður. The human residents had abandoned this lovely orange and pink cottage but these adorable sparrows had moved in and made their nest on the kitchen shelf next to the coffee-filters. The children thought this to be such an adventure. we found little treasures in the house, like old colouring-books, retro tin cans with psychadelic- and disney-prints and handpainted platters. On the second floor there were 6 built-in bunks for children: this had obviously once been a house filled with children, laughter and good memories. My children were so sad that "the family" had abandoned this adorable cottage and left it to rot that we decided to leave the treasures to honor the children if they would change their minds and come back for them..

Away

GUEST PHOTOGRAPHER: Gustavo Marcelo Blanco

Gustavo writes: I was living close by this street that leads up to Hallgrimskirkja and always wanted to capture it. The name is an inside joke. I gave it to a friend as a wedding present. I have actually seen it on the wall in his house. I shot it digitally twice, the later time off the computer screen, hence the funky effect.

The street is Skothúsvegur, which crosses over Tjörnin, the Reykjavik city lake. The name derives from the city's Shooting Club, which had it's headquarters at Tjarnagata 35, a house that sits just off of this road.

Many thanks to Gustavo, who currently resides in Amsterdam where he is earning his BA in Filmmaking (he is also a movement recoding artist), for supplying this beautiful image. Please be sure to check out more photos by him at Squared Image Dump.

Perception

GUEST PHOTOGRAPHER: Today's guest photographer is Valentína Jóhannsdóttir. This shot is an absolute mind-bender, and I was completely unable to see what the photo was of until she told me. Can you guess? *

How we experience our reality depends, of course, on how we perceive it. For many here in Iceland, the current reality is not such a pleasant one: the state of the nation is still undefined, and heading into a third winter of discontent does not seem like a happy prospect. (For a decent summation of how things stand here on the Lava Rock, read this interview in the Reykjavik Grapevine with Iceland's Minister of Finance.)

We can choose, though, to see things from another angle, and appreciate the luxury of living on this surprisingly verdant island. We are blessed, for example, with what so many do without: clean water. For that alone, I give thanks every day.

*It's a grassy lawn, bleached by sunlight, blued by shadows and smudged by movement! By the way, Valentína is my 13 year old daughter : )

Still

Our gorgeous Mio, and the 75 year old Bing & Grøndahl porcelain figurine I found of him at the amazing Fríða Frænka antique store in the heart of Reykjavik, decorate our living room window. How a Danish artist of the early twentieth century could have known our cat so well, I'll never know : )