Artist, Sophie Keir, sent this detail of an Oil on Canvas painting of stormy, dramatic clouds inspired by the often in the background skies of Old Master paintings. These skies are sometimes more interesting than the main focus!
You can see more of her paintings, prints and cards on her website.
Chuck Metcalfe, Member 61,468, sent us a poem he wrote in November this year and a photograph he took at his camp in Stockton, New York, that inspired it.
Ladder to the Clouds
If I could build a ladder to the clouds, we could climb so high into the sky.
We could frolic and play, and stay all day, just the two of us;
while we jump and bounce from Stratus to Cumulus.
We might sing and dance on Altostratus; or perchance ride the mares’ tails of Cirrus Uncinus .
Amongst the Cirrus we would search freely in, until we find a parhelion; petting that sundog we could do, and maybe see its halo too.
Nimbostratus would not ruin our day, if above the rain we were able to stay.
Even Cumulonimbus with its flashy show would look different from above you know.
We would have our own park without the crowds, if I could build a ladder to the clouds.
© 11/17/2023 Chuck Metcalfe
Massimilianoiano Sqadroni recently shared this spectacular “Time-lapse of Castelluccio di Norcia – February 2020”
Dan Barstow, Member 41,557 and Education Mission Specialist at the Association of Space Explorers introduced us to the ‘Earth Movie Theatre’. Working with world-class musicians they combine music with ISS moves of Earth. This production was in celebration of the new Bach Forest and the satellite image covers Ireland to Saudi Arabia at night.
The Bach Forest is situated in Leipzig and over the next few years a forest of approximately 29 hectares will be planted on the western side of Lake Störmthal. You can see more about it on the Bach Fest website
Hayley Richards, member 52,003 lives in Hanover, New Hampshire and told us she has been inspired to paint clouds recently.
Vyacheslav Konoval is a poet from Kyiv, Ukraine. Many of his poems have been translated into Spanish, French, Italian and Polish but this is one he wrote in English for CAS members to enjoy.
Image: “A Sunset over Kiev, Ukraine” © Vera Uzhva
A dark blue cloud crawls across the sky
A dark blue cloud crawls across the sky,
It rains every day.
As if punishment is pouring from God.
Fluffy fresh caresses,
crowded street of
stockpiled ice fragments.
My body doesn’t obey
It seemed to be dozing,
limps tiredly in laziness.
© Vyacheslav Konoval
Roelof van der Schaaf, Member 30,007, recently sent us his timelapse of a sunset in Franeker, Friesland in the Netherlands.
Cloud Appreciation Society member, Tim Burgess, suggested this song by Mary Chapin Carpenter.
Pauline Bailly is a painter from Normandy, France who likes to paint Lady-Clouds, called “Les Femmes-Nuages” in French. She describes her work below:
My Cloudy Women are the link between reality and dreams. It is an ambiguity between two worlds, with a strong emphasis on introspection in a style sprinkled with surrealism, where onirism takes over and supplants all rationality.
The cloud is like a connection between the character’s states of mind and the world around us. Like an extension of the emotions, these cumulus clouds, for the most part, are a window onto thought. They are like dream vapors, melancholy clouds, like a veil of poetry rooted in the midst of landscapes, terrestrial or celestial settings.
These women are like guardians of their own universe, but also of those of others. The spectators can project their own stories and dreams into my paintings. A bridge is created, in a spirit of sharing hope and softness.
To find or buy my artworks, you can visit my website www.paulinebaillyart.com
Buy on Artmajeur https://www.artmajeur.com/pauline-bailly-1
Or contact me directly at pauline-bailly@outlook.fr
Social media @Les_Femmes_Nuages on instagram / Pauline Bailly – Peintures on Facebook
Minnie Biggs, Member 4,330, recently sent her poem about the skies over Bhutan, which is situated on the Himalayas’ eastern edge. We’ve accompanied it with an image from Michael Ellis “Aladdin’s lamp spotted over Bhutan, South Asia“
Go to Bhutan
Cloud heaven
we are looking at the clouds in the distance
we are below the clouds
we are in the middle of the clouds
We are above the clouds,
Looking at more clouds
in the clouds is different
Than above or below
Wet damp not rain wet
And the mountains
That meet the clouds
Embrace the clouds
Are embraced by the clouds
Intermingle with the clouds
seldom one without the other
In Bhutan
Clouds
Heaven
© Minnie Biggs
George Preoteasa, Member 41,445, sent in his timelapse video of the recent annular eclipse. He told us, “I was in Mexican Hat, Utah, which was on the centerline. It’s hard to capture the feeling in a movie or pictures, given that you have to use a solar filter most of the time, so you have to make a composite. But I tried”.
From the Earth Movie Theatre, this is a composition by Steve Thomas whose guitar floats with us over the coast of Peru and Chile. Dan Barstow, Member 41,557 and Education Mission Specialist at the Association of Space Explorers introduced us to the ‘Earth Movie Theatre’ and we are thoroughly enjoying the music of world-class musicians combined with ISS movies of Earth.
Ann Kraus, member 48,329, sent us this painting of the sunrise over the Atlantic Ocean outside Halifax.
Gerdienke Ubels, Member 21,012 sent us this short Q&A about the clouds over Weimar, 24th August 1881.
Q: What was the weather like in Weimar, 24 August 1881?
A: There were grey clouds coming in.
Q: How do we know that?
A: Franz Lizst put them into music and noted the date: ‘Nuages Gris’, Weimar 24 August 1881 (listen to how they roll in)
Nick Houvras, Member 7,367 sent us one of his recent poems.
Image: Crepuscular Rays over Somerset, England © Helen Crawley
A Wish
Don’t you wish you were a cloud?
Flying free where ever the wind sent you!
Looking down from up above on sunny ground!
Or wet leaves you sent your water to.
And then you slowly disappear from the heavens that held you.
Just as the earth holds us we too go with or without a sin.
But everyone asks where did that cloud go?
And so do all of us here now on Mother Earth!
© Nick Houvras, 2023
Phil Behnke told us about surfing the Morning Glory cloud as a glider pilot and shared with us this video of cloud surfing by fellow pilot and professional photographer Al Sim.
This is a recent painting by Kate Edge, Member 30,633, of Foel Cwm Cerwyn in the Preseli Hills, a range of hills in North Pembrokeshire, West Wales. She told us that on the day it was painted the Cirrus clouds were wonderful.
Rebecca Marr, member 7,548, emailed to say how much she enjoys the Music to Watch Clouds by section of our website and suggested her own favourite, Cloud Nine by the Temptations.
Sara Austin Bailey, member 50,249 sent us this cloud-inspired poem from her home in North Carolina.
Takashi Usui sent us his recent timelapse videos of clouds over Japan accompanied by some gentle music
This scene was captured in Beenbrck, Namibia and was painted by artist, Penny Hauffe. Penny was born in Windhoek, Namibia and now lives in Virginia, USA.
You can see more of Penny’s work on her website
From the Earth Movie Theatre, this is Jazz Clouds Day, by Steve Thomas’ Folktales and Fusions. Dan Barstow, Member 41,557 and Education Mission Specialist at the Association of Space Explorers introduced us to the ‘Earth Movie Theatre’ and we are thoroughly enjoying the music of world-class musicians combined with ISS movies of Earth.
Kate Edge, Member 30,633, wrote this piece whilst busily working on new cloud paintings for an exhibition. We’ve accompanied her text with one of her previous paintings, “Foel Drygarn”
We bring peace to you now and forever more.
We are the motion of love resplendent.
Our journey is to cover earth with
love’s nourishment -to feed mankind
all the seeds sown by the Creator.
We pass all manner of changes below
but we are the circles of divine motion
breathing over the turbulence on earth.
Cloud awakening means to know the
invisible that we carry and to carry it to
the heart of others .
We are a living prayer.
We evoke the remembrance of the eternal beauty in all.
© Kate Edge 2022
Ruth Baily, member 37,436, has proposed the beautiful song “Your Cloud” by Tori Amos for our Music to Watch Clouds By page.
Schar Freeman, Member 54,318 resides on the island of Kaua’i in the Hawaiian Islands. She told us “I love my walks on the beach. I am a painter and love clouds. This one is my favourite beach walks on an overcast day with clouds that brought no rain..even with the Frog Face that lingers in this formation”.
Dale Wayne suggested ‘Pareidolia’ by Buck Meek, for the Music to Watch Clouds by section of our website
Buckshot Dot, AKA Dee Strickland Johnson, sent one of her more recent poems. The image we’ve chosen to accompany it is a sunrise over Terrassa, Barcelona, Spain by Lourdes Sanches Munoz
A BRILLIANT SUNSET
I saw a sunset, just this evening.
Out the window of my den.
‘Twas so lovely, so inspiring
I ran to fetch my camera in.
Vermillion clouds –
a dozen of them, ‘gainst a sky
deep turquoise blue!
By the time I’d found my camera, tho’,
alas, the show was through.
Still, I know I’ll keep it always
in the lens of my mind’s eye:
Those amazing brilliant
orange pink clouds
dancing in a turquoise sky.
Buckshot Dot* © 2020
Phil Erickson sent in a recent painting by his wife, artist Penny Hauffe. It depicts a dramatic formation on the Outer Banks of North Carolina (USA) at Nags Head.
You can see more of Penny’s work on her website
Dan Barstow, Member 41,557 and Education Mission Specialist at the Association of Space Explorers introduced us to the ‘Earth Movie Theatre’. In this example Astronauts selected 20 favourite views of Earth – aurora, cities at night, clouds. . .
Magnus Buder from Sweden heard about the Cloud Appreciation Society on Swedish public radio. He recently wrote this piece of music and feels it will be perfect to listen to whilst watching clouds.
Fern Gadd, is a retired artist located in central Florida. She paints for pleasure and also to raise funds for local pet rescues. “High Country” is one in a series of her recent paintings.
You can see more of her work on her website
Jurene Phaneuf, Member 45,173, saw this video by Adrian De Lisle of fog flowing around Vancouver at Sunrise and felt we’d all enjoy the scene.
Romano Zeraschi sent us this recent cloud inspired poem. We’ve paired it with a sunrise over Sumirago, Varese, Italy by Paolo Bardelli.
Nuvole:
anime che svolano
addensano
e svaporano
cartografie di sogni
illusioni.
Stampigliano promesse
scambiano timidi baci
e umide di timidi amori
vezzose e libere
scorrono e sbrigliano
nel superno abisso
senza paura.
Dipingono
cose che vorremmo
e non sappiamo
o ci fanno paura
minacciose
quando avanzano orridamente scure
per poi pentirsi
e piangere
e allora è una promessa
un pegno assoluto
uno squarcio che viene dal blu
dentro la fossa
del nostro esistere
giù nei meandri delle nostre attese.
Eccole che finalmente di nuovo scorrono
e sfarfallano rappacificate
eccole che indugiano pigre
decorando i plurimi cieli con nobili medaglie
di smalti ialini
e poi madrepore, ventagli di gorgonie e coralli.
Fantastiche creature:
talvolta assumono il tratto di un topolino
e allora paiono squittire
a volte son volpi, farfalle, uccelli
e allora si attende un guaito
il cinguettio garrulo di un fringuello, d’un cardellino civettuolo.
Più spesso scorrono liberamente festose come alunne d’un primo giorno di scuola
o s’indovinano in ricreazione
immerse in un fervore di beatitudini
dimentiche d’ogni campanella.
Osserviamole ora per ora
seguiamone le tracce nell’inseguimento infinito
mutevole ed eterno:
vederle in adunata
stringersi in circolo come sorelle
ci paiono intonare di lassù un coro
per poi obbedire ad un cenno imperscrutabile
e allontanarsi per punti cardinali diversi
a oltrepassare l’orizzonte o morire prima
magari a ovest, sciogliendosi nel tramonto.
E al mattino
rivestite di bianco
quando germogliano appena al primo orizzonte visibile
sbocciarsi poi in eteree
quasi fragranti e revolute forme
che si allontanano
divergono e poi s’adunano
accavallandosi in canyon e radure
e precipizi
e burroni
o talora vicendevolmente sgranarsi a festoni
in bianche molliche d’immaginarie catene
colline e pianure
e dissomiglianti montagne
disegnando .
Accade anche che una nube si compiaccia in splendido isolamento:
resti alta allo zenit
o sfiori gli orizzonti per una ronda circolare
d’una missione compunta e segreta.
Albe e tramonti susseguono
ed è allora che si ammantano di violetto
o in più tenui ametiste
tramutando in arancio o porporino.
Veleggiano in grumi vacui
in eburnei fiocchi galleggiano
pullulando talvolta in purpurei amorini
E non raramente si espandono
circonflesse o lenticolari
o si aggregano, rabbuiandosi in cumuli e nembi.
Man mano, il Grande Atlante si sfoglia:
isole e atolli e lagune compaiono
i reef d’una barriera corallina
istmi e favolosi fondali
e penisole e continenti
un tettonico scivolar di placche
milioni di anni in poche ore
minuti del nostro esistere.
Lassù c’è vita
condensa e compatta strati e substrati
ere geologiche in ore o minuti
e poi pianeti, costellazioni
lo sciame luminoso dei cirri, asteroidi vaporosi e soffici
e può anche accadere che irrompa un bolide non si sa da qual vento sospinto.
Ma questa è scienza
meteorologia astratta
geologia e geografia insieme
inesatta e purissima astronomia
quand’esse son lassù a giocare invece per gli eterni bimbi
per i cuori dell’infanzia
per noi solamente
per noi
piccoli e sperduti principi d’un pianeta perduto.
© Romano Zeraschi
Cloud enthusiast Dora Drake, shared ‘In the Clouds’ an album by Michele Ippolito. Its relaxing ‘atmospheric’ music is great to listen to whilst watching clouds.
Ann Kraus, Member 48,329, sent us her painting “Puffy Spring Clouds” from a series of paintings on her chosen subject matter of clouds.
You can see more of her work on her website: Kraus Studio
Cloud enthusiast Brian Matheson sent us his timelapse video filmed between 8.30pm-9.45pm on 30th July 2023 over the River Clyde, Scotland.
Dan Barstow, Member 41,557 and Education Mission Specialist at the Association of Space Explorers introduced us to the ‘Earth Movie Theatre’. Like an astronaut, you fly over Sahara and Mediterranean. Listen to award-winning violinist Qingzhu Weng play “Chaconne” – the Mount Everest of Bach violin (BWV 1004)
David Evans, Member 61,735, sent us a recent painting. He told us “This is a painting I made of a tremendous cloud which appeared suddenly over a beach in Tadoussac, Quebec, Canada on a sunny day in 2018”.
Annie Dillard, Member 46,119 sent us an anecdote of an encounter from a small ship in Antarctic waters. We’ve paired it with an image from “Cloudface 88” of Lenticularis over Skarsvåg, Nordkapp, Finnmark, Norway
“Over a long life I’ve learned that the meaning of this sight is a handy thing to know.
From a small ship in Antarctic waters I saw a stack of lenticular clouds and thought HERE’S TROUBLE.
We pulled into a station and those manning it said, Go to the hurricane harbor.
We toodled off to the safe harbor. It was fully occupied by the Chilean Navy.
We had no choice but to head out for sea room. If we were going to be helpless in a storm, we’d best go where
we wouldn’t hit anything. I’d often read about “sea room” and here it was.
We bucked and tilted –probably used a lot of gas–and were just fine.
Later I found a similar stack of lenticular clouds almost permanently over the peak of Washington’s Mount Baker”.
© Annie Dillard
Kevin Summers directed us to this cloud song from Josh Grider & Drew Kennedy entitled “West Texas Cloud Appreciation Society”. We hope you enjoy it as much as we did.
