Over
the past couple months of my eco art studies, I have been influenced by a small
handful of eco artists and have developed a desire to create a related art
series based on these eco art concepts. I am planning to create a series of
photos displaying abstract visual representations of natural ecological
occurrences that incorporate transparent materials and intangibles such as
light, shadow, and reflections. The abstract qualities of the series will
inspire the viewer to question the sources of the images and encourage them to
contemplate upon them. These images will not be created but found, as they
portray illustrated moments of time where natural objects are being manipulated
by nature. With this series, I hope to entice the viewer to look more closely
at small delicate moments in nature and time in daily life, pique their
curiosities of the natural world, and provide wonder to natural happenings that
tend to be overlooked or taken for granted in our busy technologically infused
schedules.
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| West Oakland. 8 x 10 inches. Photography. 2004. |
I’ve
been taking close up images of natural objects for some time now. Looking at my photo
archives, I see it was in 2004 when I became intrigued by an icy pattern on my
bathroom window. What we know as “Jack Frost” had turned into a photo shoot
with a mysterious construction of shapes, lines and gentle variations of icy
hues. I recognized that with one stroke of sun, this small intricate detailing
of icy lace could disappear into a wet window and took it upon myself to
capture my first natural happening. Within a few years, I began exploring
additional small natural moments I discovered in water, light and reflections.
Some not so apparently found in day-to-day life, but inspirational to my new
developing series.
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| Cannonball. 8 x 10 inches. Photography. 2007. |
This
was around the same time that I created my wind chimes outside the art studios
at my undergraduate campus. Small metal tubes emanating a light hum carefully
situated, almost hidden, among chosen branches in the beginning tree line were
to call to the viewer to be open to question their source, create a mystery and
encourage the viewer into exploring the trees and branches. Primarily, it was
to encourage the viewer to use their senses and connect with the outdoors. It
held a similar purpose to the abstract images I began collecting through my
photography, where they were to lead a viewer to desire to know more. I hoped wonderment
and questions would then lead to an appreciation of the beauty found within
nature.
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| Cube. 8 x 10 inches. Photography. 2010. |
Ten
years later, I have come across a book that showcases artists that do just this,
giving my previous work new purpose and meaning. As described in Weintraub’s To Life! (2012), Allan Kaprow, Hans
Haacke, Educardo Kac and Red Earth have created instances where one can derive
an appreciation for moments of nature through careful design, direction and installation
while these systems act/react and change through manipulation. Allan Kaprow’s
“Performing a River” enticed participants to savor the guardianship of
transporting a wet rock. Atypical considerations of humidity, distance and how
the rock was placed in one’s hand were at play during this performance
(Weintraub, 2012, p. 87-92). Hans Haacke’s “Condensation Cube” delighted
viewers in producing a natural system that displayed water droplets in an
unusual and unfamiliar scenario. He successfully captured and produced a layer
of condensation for observation purposes, wherein it is most of the time
undesirably collected inside a car window, on a bathroom mirror before its
necessary use for our daily preparation, or on the side of a drinking glass resting on top of a wooden table
(Weintraub, 2012, p. 69-73). Eduardo Kac’s “Painting with Life” framed living
microbes and created situations that encouraged them to compose abstract
compositions; and, Red Earth’s “Enclosure” provided a surreal, yet
nature-orientated, experience to bring out a response to landscape and site
(Weintraub, 2012, p. 221-225, 253-258). All four eco artists created instances
where atypically we do not see or experience this moment happening in nature. They
brought things into our light. Their art reminds us of nature by awakening our
senses.
I
found it interesting that we have to be reminded of the beauty nature provides. I now know that I took it for
granted that I grew up within it, appreciating it, watching my parents
appreciating it. Some do not have a backyard, neighboring woods or encouraging
experiences. Which is why I wasn’t all too surprised to learn about nature
deficit disorder. I first came across this term while reading about Red Earth
in To Life. While this eco art duo strived to “help curb the pandemic of
‘nature-deficit disorders’” through their performance, I began to feel like I
too could help support this cause through my art (Weintraub, 2012, p. 257).
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| Still. 8 x 10 inches. Photography. 2011. |
I
found that Richard Louv, a journalist and author of books that discuss
the connections between family, nature and community, coined “Nature-Deficit
Disorder” and describes it as a moving away from nature and towards technology.
In his book “Last Child in the Woods: Saving Our Children from Nature-Deficit
Disorder,” Louv (2005) argues for a movement to bring nature back into children’s
lives and why it’s advantageous to do so. Louv further explains in an NPR
interview that the unstructured connections made with nature tap into all the
senses, promote discovery and, most importantly, build compassion (Inskeep
& Louv, 2005).
I later found startling, yet not surprising, statements in another
article by Louv titled “Back to Nature: Understanding Nature Deficit Disorder.”
It describes that while we shift our focus onto screens, we unfortunately spend a majority of our time
trying to block out our senses. Here, it also says that nature deficit disorder
isn’t necessarily a disorder of children or adults but of a society and
community (Louv, 2013).
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| Yellow and Blue. 8 x 10 inches. Photography. 2012. |
In
addition to creating a series, I began thinking about how I could present this
concept of abstract visual representations to a younger audience in a lesson
format. I know students of all ages would appreciate interpreting examples of
nature in abstract form; as it would simulate a mystery, a game, and perhaps a
challenge to figure out what was being represented. I asked a colleague about
how I would apply this concept to a lesson. This fellow art teacher was
thrilled to connect it to a recent workshop she attended that did just this.
Deborah had said that engaging the students in a scientific study of found
natural materials using small eye scopes (Eye Loupe 5x Magnification, to be
specific) will provide a stimulating observational challenge in identifying
textures, lines, shapes that were not so apparent to them before. Students
would then select one interesting object to carefully observe and illustrate in
a small sketch and then enlarge it into a painting (D. Parkansky, personal
communication, March 28, 2014). The mystery and wonderment would come to its
fruition when all students can observe and contemplate over their peers’
subject matter.
While
I found that the four influential eco artists and the nature deficit disorder
inspired me to develop a photographic series, I feel that it is most important
to recognize and establish the message I am attempting to communicate. I want
the viewer, society, and children to slow down, look and appreciate what is so
often overlooked, unseen and/or unrecognized. The abstract qualities of the
images captured will encourage the wonderment and fascination of the subject or
object’s origin. Images included in the series may be rotated in display, but the
subject will not be manipulated or created for my photography purposes. I will
strive to capture a pureness to the natural happenings, moments and occurrences
in daily life in order to solicit a “natural” connection. Furthermore, I will
encourage interpretation, self-discovery and personalized conclusions, in order
to promote active learning and compassion. This is not intended to serve as a
substitute for nature, but to inspire and provoke a curiosity that leads one
outdoors with open eyes and turned on, or “tuned in”, senses.
* * * *
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| A Moment (in nature) #1. 8 x 10 inches. Photography. 2014. |
My
first of this series is called “A Moment (in nature) #1.” Purposefully
ambiguous. Ponder for a few moments. Enjoy its abstract qualities. It could be
viewed solely as an abstract piece or you can figure out what it is. Either
way, enjoy.
~Jen
References:
Louv,
R. (2005). Last child in the woods:
Saving our children from nature-deficit disorder. New York: Algonguin Books
of Chapel Hill.
Weintraub,
L. (2012). To Life!: Eco art in pursuit
of a sustainable planet. Los Angeles: University of California Press.
