Monday, 17 September 2007

the mighty leatherback and why nature makes the best art

Today i went to visit my friend T Todd (Jones) who lives (at times quite literally) out on south campus; to say hello as I had not seen him in ages and to show my friend Ben Todd's in captivity reared leatherback. 2 years, 2 months and 2 days is how old it is. Pretty incredible when you think that these creatures typically foray in pelagic waters. Yes they look a bit awkward and aren't necessarily pretty - but they are truly stunningly beautiful creature; and there's something mythical in a way about them.
On the way back to the AERL - the lovely (ironic!!!) building in which my office sits - under the warm sun and staring straight at the blue sky I couldn't help but think of an email my sister had written me about an exhibit she had gone to see in Edinburgh by Richard Long. He turns nature into art or as he calls it "art made by walking in landscapes". Actually I'd like to think nature is art all in and of itself ... it's just that some particularly talented and perceptive folks such as Long and Andy Goldsworthy are incredibly apt at bringing out the beauty and catching it's sometimes ephemeral aspects.
Nature simply is truly and astoundingly beautiful :)

1 comment:

Unknown said...

.
Beauty, Beautifully, beautifulness!...oh what words, how powerful an adjective to qualify as Beautiful
The well known saying, that 'Beauty 'is in the eye of the beholder, yet as you've mentioned, Nature, and all its beauty, goes far to often unnoticed. Unintentionally? Intentionally?
Can we, sapient creatures of nature, be so bold and ungrateful, that we allow ourselves to dismiss this ability to value and witness beauty? why I say, why?

Speaking of gratuitous beauty... Today's sunset created the most (un-natural) sky that I've seen in years. The kind you sometimes (in disbelief)laugh at when seen depicted in paintings. that's when I often say to myself "How can that be real? Come on!"

Well, at 6:25pm the canvas was as such:
Sky had grey dark clouds slitted by majestic blue in the background, further up in our painting we had cotton candy light clouds shining off the dying rays of the days' sun, with rivers of silver and gold in an almost holly fashion, to my left, a whisk of the rainbow showing off herself for a brief moment. Almost instinctively I felt a laugh coming out..., then it hit me! Beauty! Nature's unparalleled Beauty! Freely displayed for me at no charge....

Lets not take beauty for granted, in all its forms, sizes and shades... And let us not forget it!