Chapter 14: Pattern (The final in this series)

Through repetition, patterns create visual harmony, rhythm and order, all of which can contribute to meaning and create a sense of stability and symmetry which is pleasing to the eye. Patterns are apparent in the energy fields within atoms, the immensity of the cosmos and the way we function, behave and spend our time. They can convey spiritual, mathematical and philosophical ideas. And as an aesthetic dimension in photography, they can create visual interest, lead the eye, frame subjects and add depth and texture. Artists in every field look for patterns and incorporate them in their works, in part because they evidence and reflect patterns in Nature and the evolutionary process of growth and expansion.

Patterns are pervasive. Look closely at your clothing, how different threads are interwoven to create a pattern. Think about the repetitive structuring of your day, the stores and restaurants you frequent, your thoughts and behaviors, how you brush your teeth and read a book. There’s security in repetition. Redundancy is an indication that something is working. When machines, objects and processes display a pattern, they become part of our psychological “comfort zone.”

Human-made patterns are evidence of our ability to repeat processes and create objects and images that are consistent, even identical, and organize them into coherence. They’re strongly associated with culture, for instance in the areas of building materials, shopping carts, clothing and fabric, wallpaper and architecture. Look at the black and white work of German photographer Peter Keetman (1916-2005) who specialized in patterns that he found in water, cars and machine tools.

Depiction of Chaak, the ancient Maya rain god

In Patterns of Culture, anthropologist Ruth Benedict observed that “A culture, like an individual, is a more or less consistent pattern of thought and action.” Each culture, she said, chooses from “the great arc of human potentialities” a set of characteristics that become its personality traits. They constitute an “interdependent constellation of aesthetics and values” that make up the culture’s unique worldview. A conception of an ancient Maya diety is reflected in this patterned frieze on “The Nunnery,” a large architectural complex at Uxmal in Yucatan, Mexico. The photographs of African artist Thandiwe Muriu combine her interest in the country’s people, textiles and ideologies to create striking, highly patterned tableaus that confront issues around identity and self-perception.

Nature-made patterns reveal the underlying order of universal forces including gravity, magnetism, planetary and geologic movement, seasons, climate, wind and wave motion and electric force to name a few. Among other things, Amanda Means created black and white photographs of leaves without using a camera, exposing them to white light in a darkroom after pressing them down with glass on photographic paper. These are sometimes called “photograms.”

In some patterns the order is regular, for instance in snowflakes, spider webs, snake skin and fish scales.

In others, such as a tiger’s stripes, tree bark and soil erosion the patterns are irregular.

Patterns can also flow, as in smoke, water ripples and a undulating sand dunes. Artist Paula Pink explores “the unforeseen or hidden details that are part of our everyday lives.” Her images demonstrate how an electronic flash light and color backgrounding can capture beautiful patterns in water.

APPLICATION

In a world where visual chaos appears to be the norm, ordered patterns stand out. And they can be stark. If the communication objective is to create an image that will grab the viewer’s attention, a highly ordered pattern would be appropriate. The downside is that once the subject is identified and the pattern appreciated, the regularity or sameness can become monotonous.

South Dakota Badlands

TECHNIQUE

Patterns are relatively easy to find, especially in nature and where natural subjects such as flora and fauna are found—for instance, in gardens and zoos. For years, one of my most productive locations for photographing flower patterns with a close up lens has been greenhouses. The diffuse lighting is excellent and there are varieties of plants. Without wind requiring a fast shutter speed to reduce blur, the aperture can be stopped way down to maximize depth of field, even up close. Unlike large conservatories, owners of greenhouses readily give permission to set up a tripod as long as it doesn’t block the aisles for their customers.

A pattern is enhanced by eliminating any visual element that’s not part of it. Again, this means getting in close. In nature I plan my expeditions by searching locations—especially “ecosystems” on the internet, favoring places where patterns and other strong geometries are likely to be found. In nature, these include tide pools, sand dunes, forests, meadows, snow drifts and water or wind-formed rock features.

Human-made objects displaying patterns are abundant in floor tiles, brick walls, furniture, architecture and clothing.

“PATTERN” IN PERSONAL AND SOCIAL CONTEXTS

Pattern recognition is critically important in making decisions and judgments, acquiring knowledge, advancing the sciences and expressing creativity. Writing in Psychology Today, psychologists Michele and Robert Root-Berstein found that “The drive to recognize and form patterns can be a spur to curiosity, discovery and experimentation throughout life.” They cite M.C. Escher and Leonardo da Vinci as artists who purposefully looked for patterns in wood grain, stone walls, stains and clouds to depict and stimulate the viewer’s thinking. Biologists and anthropologists observe that every living being repeats a form, behavior or process in order to survive and propagate.

Psychologist, Jamie Hale adds a caution, noting that “the tendency to see patterns in everything can lead to seeing things that don’t exist.” His examples of pattern recognition gone awry include “hearing messages when playing records backward, seeing faces on Mars, seeing the Virgin Mary on a piece of toast, superstitious beliefs of all types and conspiracy theories.” I’d add to this “the corporate turning of a blind eye” to the increasing patterns of destruction—shown in television newscasts—due to human influenced climate change.

Once in a while it’s good to look at our most repetitious behavioral patterns, the things we do almost every day, and ask if they’re producing positive results for ourselves, others, society and the planet. As with every facet of our lives, to get a different result the challenge is to adopt a different pattern of thinking or behavior. A recent little example of my own has been to reduce my use of plastics in certain restaurants by asking for cold beverages in a paper cup and not using straws.

On the social side, there are both positive and negative patterns in public policy. I summarize some examples (from AI 2025) as representative of an information based pattern.

Positive

Environmental Justice and Climate Resilience Initiatives

The Environmental Justice Executive Order (2021) directed federal agencies to address pollution and climate risks disproportionately affecting low-income and minority communities. The Justice40 Initiative ensures 40% of climate and clean energy investments benefit disadvantaged communities.

Strengthening Worker Protections and Living Wages

The Occupational Safety and Health Act (OSHA, 1970) significantly reduced workplace injuries and deaths. Several states and cities have raised the minimum wage to $15/hour or higher, improving living conditions for low-income workers.

Expanding Public Transit and Sustainable Urban Development

Federal investments in transit systems like New York City’s subway and California’s high-speed rail aim to reduce car dependency. The Bipartisan Infrastructure Law (2021) allocates billions for public transit, rail and pedestrian infrastructure to reduce emissions.

Water Infrastructure and Clean Drinking Water Initiatives

The Safe Drinking Water Act (1974) set standards for clean water, protecting public health. The Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (2021) includes $50 billion to replace lead pipes and improve water infrastructure.

Negative

 

Deregulation of Environmental Protections

The current administration rolled back over 100 environmental regulations, including limits on methane emissions, protections for endangered species and clean air and water regulations. These rollbacks favored industrial profits despite increased pollution and environmental degradation.

Fossil Fuel Subsidies and Drilling Expansion

The U.S. government provides billions of dollars in subsidies to fossil fuel companies.

Agricultural Policies Favoring Industrial Farming

The U.S. Farm Bill heavily subsidizes large-scale monoculture farming of corn and soybeans, which depletes soil health, encourages excessive pesticide use and harms biodiversity. Factory farming also leads to water contamination and high greenhouse gas emissions.

Policies Encouraging Deforestation and Land Exploitation

The U.S. government has allowed logging and mining in national forests and public lands, often overriding indigenous rights. In 2020, the Tongass National Forest in Alaska lost protections, allowing more commercial logging, threatening biodiversity and carbon storage.

Given the current socio-political climate, I offer a personal perspective—

According to philosopher and social scientist Beatrice Bruteau, our best hope lies in the emerging paradigm, what she refers to in Eucharistic Ecology and Ecological Spirituality as the “communion paradigm,” the perception that the earth does not belong to us, that we belong to it, and that all things and people are interconnected in the web of life.

In The Universe Story: From the Primordial Flaring Forth to the Ecozoic Era–A Celebration of the Unfolding of the Cosmos, eco-theologian Thomas Berry and cosmologist Brian Swimme show how the old sectarian story about how the world came to be and where we fit in, is not only dysfunctional but toxic to living systems. Importantly, Dr. Berry distinguishes the “environmental” movement from the “ecological” movement, the former attempting to be a respectful adjustment of the earth to the needs of human beings, whereas the latter is an adjustment of human beings to the needs of the planet. It’s why I’m always looking for leaders whose concern is “ecosystems” rather than “the environment.” According to Berry and Swimme, the basic tenants of ecosystems are differentiation, which is the foundation of resilience (creating and celebrating variety in all things including people), subjectivity (preserving the inner aspects of life, the “vast mythic, visionary, symbolic world with all its numinous qualities”), and communion (the co-creative, mutually beneficial interrelatedness “that enables life to emerge into being.”) These three elements  have been identified as fundamental patterns in the evolution of living systems.

A change in perception is not enough. It must be matched with commensurate action by individuals and governments, religions, educational institutions and corporations. For me, shifting to clean and renewable power sources is Priority Two. Thomas Berry expressed my Number One, which is love and respect for the planet and all living beings. As he put it, “All human institutions, professions, programs and activities must now be judged by the extent to which they inhibit, ignore or foster a human and Earth relationship.”

So what can we do? We can develop a pattern, habits of recycling, minimizing our carbon and consumption footprints, supporting local, state and national initiatives in safeguarding or restoring ecosystems, educating ourselves and talking about ecology with family and friends—in person and through social media, and affect even broader influence by consistently supporting and voting for leaders who are knowledgeable about ecology and make positive responses to climate change a top priority. It’s important because the survival and vitality of everything else, without exception, depends on humanity getting into patterns of right relationship with the planet, the biosphere and each other.

For further reading on what we can do, I recommend Active Hope: How to Face the Mess We’re in without Going Crazy by Joanna Macy and Chris Johnstone.

The human might better think of itself as a mode of being of the Earth rather than simply as a separate being on the Earth.

Thomas Berry, Catholic priest and geologian

_____________________________________________________

My other sites:

David L. Smith Photography Portfolio.com

Ancient Maya Cultural Traits.com: Weekly blog featuring the traits that made this civilization unique

Spiritual Visionaries.com: A library of 81 free videos on YouTube featuring visionaries and events of the 1980s.