Nemaea: some of you may know this place. It’s far away: strange new worlds and spaceships larger than cities. Nemaea is a presence that I feel, constantly; I know people who live there—characters I've made up: a woman from Earth. Her name is Dorianna. She has a complex, and sometimes troubled relationship with Ilya, a Nemaean and the central viewpoint character of the tales in which he participates; Dorianna loved him—once—though to be fair, she had an adolescent girl’s crush on the willow-thin blond boy who lived at sea on another planet. They grew up, lost contact with one another, and then--out of the blue--Dorianna returned and Ilya's life grew complicated. I thought of this as I shined light through a small, newly-acquired circuit board. It’s smaller than the others I possess, and it’s in better condition. I’ll use it. Later. For something else. For now, it is a photographic subject, and an unexpected, accidental reference to Nemaea, to Doriana and her half-requited affections for Ilya. They aren’t teenagers, any more, and for those familiar with the beginning of their tale, they aren’t exactly the people they seem to be. Dorianna is chaotic, to put it mildly: she has agenda she doesn't always feel the need to tell anyone about--until the last minute, of course. Ilya is her "keeper" and finds himself regularly annoyed, exasperated, and occasionally wounded by the fallout of Dorianna's actions. And there is Aleo, newer to Dorianna than his partner, Ilya; Aleo is a wellspring of cunning patience. These three characters define one aspect of Nemaea. Like it’s earthy counterpart, Agara, the interstellar realm of Nemaea was born in the Czech Republic. In Prague. Where Agara exists as a country with distinctly protean borders and…well…something underground, Nemaea is your more conventional interstellar, post-human society. Where Agara was born as a response to the ancient, cobblestone streets and alleys of Prague, Nemaea was born as a response to a particular bar in that city. I have images of Cross Club in my gallery, and indeed, those images served as the accompaniment to and inspiration for various tales of Nemaea. Cross Club is an interesting place…an odd, retro-futuristic nightmare of dead computer parts, automotive transmissions, airplane parts, and old seats torn from busses. Cross Club is where good machines go when they die, and as a result of that, the fictional realm of Nemaea has taken on a decidedly grungy, industrial, slightly oxidized vibe. I think, however, that a shift has occurred, as is natural for any human society. Nemaea remains familiar and industrial: grotty and ugly. Nemaean starships haven’t changed; they’re still ludicrously big. But I think that a smoothing out has occurred, that a particular color-shift has taken place as well. And all because of a flashlight, a dead circuit board, a camera, and a table. I saw something Nemaean when I made this photograph, a slight shift in their interior-design aesthetic. In short, I saw a Nemaean wall, devoid of the usual patina of oxidation and large, clunky rivets holding its various panels in place. I like what I saw—and now I wonder what changes I might discover in Nemaea. There is still more to tell about Dorianna’s ongoing adventure, Ilya’s ongoing sense of annoyance, and Aleo’s ongoing efforts to keep things on even keel and make sure that Ilya and Dorianna don’t annoy one another to death. I’m rather excited to see what the third chapter of their tale becomes. I know the third chapter (though it has yet to be written) but there are certain details that have yet to reveal themselves. Perhaps this image is a clue to the direction in which things may go…at least in terms of interior design elements. Or not… We shall see… As always, thank you for viewing, reading, and commenting, and hope you’re all having a great week. If I’m lucky, I’ll be able to do some commenting tonight.