Have you ever been in a large forest and seen a strange black tarn hidden deep among the tall trees? It looks bewitched and a little frightening. All is still—fir trees and pines huddle close and silent on all sides. Sometimes the trees bend cautiously and shyly over the water as if they are wondering what may be hidden in the dark depths. There is another forest growing in the water, and it, too, is full of wonder and stillness. Strangest of all, never have the two forests been able to speak to each other.
By the edge of the pool and out in the water are soft tussocks covered with brown bear moss and wooly white cottongrass. All is so quiet—not a sound, not a flutter of life, not a trembling breath—all of nature seems to be holding its breath listening, listening with beating heart: soon, soon.
July 30, 2010
33 responses to Little Princess Cottongrass
Those pictures are simply divine.
I’ve been longing for quite some time to bathe in a lake, letting my long red hair fall out all around me.
I miss the silence of the woods, the invisible hums and silent rush of the leaves you only remember existed from memory.
Much Love,
Norah xx
Norah, that sounds like bliss. I hope you find your forest lake soon. I miss the woods too. x
I rally do love John Bauer´s art!
So much of my own pictures are inspired by him …
Your artwork is just lovely, I can see the influence. I think he has inspired so many great artists (Brian Froud comes to mind.)
John Bauer’s pictures are just bewitchingly beautiful… A little bit sad, though…
They are… but wild, delicate, dark and pure as well, don’t you think?
Oh, you’re right! The toy shop in my fairy tale town has a book of nordic tales illustrated by John Bauer that’s divinely beautiful, that’s where I first stumbled across his artwork. I think I’ll get that book as a birthday present for myself in September…
i adore john bauer! i remember his illustrations in many storybooks borrowed from the public library a half-century ago. *shhhh — this princess doesn’t realize her age*
i have one of his beauties as my desktop pic. http://www.animationarchive.org/pics/tomtar08-big.jpg
because i live among men …the lone princess. *:)
I quite like that one, his trolls seem so gentle though. I wish my library had these books.
What beautiful words and pictures. So lovely.
(Thank you for introducing me to Tumblr…I’ve even started my own, thanks to you. http://the-village-green.tumblr.com/)
Oh, I’m so glad you are on tumblr now Blair, it is one of my favourite places to escape and indulge.
Those are some of my favorite pictures. They evoke the essence of Faerie so well. So happy you posted them here <3
They are Faerie, pure and true. I should love to see the Swedish forests some day.
I long to visit the woods; they’re so alive and full of atmosphere and secrets.
Thanks for sharing this lovely passage and these gorgeous illustrations. I love receiving magic from your blog. <3
Thank you for enjoying them with me. x
Beautiful illustrations! Oh Skye, every post of yours is a new adventure for me. I’m off to look up the whole of this Little Princess Cottongrass story now. <3
Good luck, I was not able to find a full translation. If you find it, do let me know. x
Perfectly enchanting. Do you know where I can find these lovely words in print?
I think they are from this particular book; http://www.amazon.com/Swedish-Folk-Tales-Polly-Lawson/dp/0863154573/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1280655927&sr=8-1
How beautiful! I love the ones where she is riding a moose.
It’s an Elk actually, an equally majestic creature.
So otherworldly. You can almost feel the Fae peeking out from the shadowed trees.
xxx
The longer you look at the pictures, the more secrets you discover. It was a little while before I saw all the animals in the first one. xx
I love this. It is absolutely enchanting.
Thank you Julia.
i love forest stories and imaginations since i grew up in a huge oil palm estate with my wonderful family and beautiful house…
i just love it so much and what a beautiful photos!
I love forest stories too, I spent half my childhood living on the edge of a National Park. Your home sounds wonderful.
Magic, always magic; you weave such beauty in every post. xxx
Oh, thank you, though none of this is mine. x
Those pictures are beautiful. They reminds me of dreams I used to have when I was little. Your blog is magical!
bye
I just love “the story of Skutt the moose and little princess Tuvstarr”
so lovely…this makes you want to go look for Feary again
I just discovered your blog, I love it so much. John Bauer is one of my favorite illustrators of all time. This is simply wonderful.