EARTH ART: November 2008

Sunday, November 30, 2008

More Soviet Earth Art: Trains

After the October Revolution, trains in Russia were often painted and run throughout the country. The purpose of this varied, whether to inspire those fighting or to educate peasants who had never seen art before. I've done some research into this, and found the following photographs from Art of the October Revolution which can be checked out at Cabell.

In Bolshevik Culture, Gleason et. al. elaborate on the drive behind this (in this instance, in regards to the Civil War going on in Russia at the time):

"The first such train, named after Lenin, went into action among Red Army units in August 1918. It proved to be so successful that Trotsky ordered five more… Each train was distinctively and brightly decorated with paintings and slogans…

Artists of the caliber of Mayakovsky, El Lissitsky, and Malevich were employed, but their efforts were not always rewarded with success. Some of the initial designs were too abstract or fanciful to be readily understood by a mass audience, particularly one composed largely of illiterate and backward peasants… Most peasants had never before seen a moving picture (or, indeed an image of an ordinary mortal!) and the effect was often very powerful."

What an impressive act! How wonderful it must have been to experience and see art for the first time in your life. Although the book notes that some peasants had a hard time grasping the more abstract paintings, one major advantage is that art does not require literacy. One does not need to be able to read War and Peace to understand or even feel moved by a painting!

I think this is an excellent example of Earth Art. Simple, yet with extremely beneficial effects.

Saturday, November 29, 2008

Final Project Ideas

Decay has always fascinated me, and I've been doing a lot of research into it and Earth Art. I like the idea of the Earth 'taking back'. I've always thought decaying buildings to be a sign of a 'once was', times that had been prosperous but either no longer are, or deemed as obsolete. Something bothersome to this end is that most buildings simply are not obsolete. Equipment can be recycled and re-used to either produce newer things, or small updates to continue production. Much of this does not happen from private ownership. For instance, a closed GM factory still has much to offer the world, a whole production facility! The land has been built upon, resources allocated, machinery is held inside, even the building itself. Yet, most of these buildings simply sit there and decay.

My original idea was to haul an old porcelin bathtub to the river and to give the river a bath. Rivers are often seen as source of life, a source of cleanliness and prosperity. Yet, look at the James, or any other river these days: it is filled with algae (from a messed up Nitrogen cycle), pollution, trash, and so forth. In fact, it seems that rivers these days are the exact antithesis of what their ideal forms represent.

I thought it would be a bit funny, a bit interesting to give the river a bath, and to "clean it back" to this ideal [previous existing] state. To me, it seems that the James has undergone some decay. The significance of the bathtub would be for one, to wash the river and to clean it, but also this object of the past is now restoring the river to a past-state.

After talking with Brad and thinking over some more, I might simply place the bathtub in locations around Richmond and photograph it there, and ultimately, place it in the river. I was also thinking of creating a video and showing the manual labor that goes into moving a large solid porcelain bathtub (it weighs somewhere around 125-150 pounds).

Along the James near Riverside drive there is the old hydroelectric plant. Just below it is a wooden bridge that is crossed often, by pedestrians and Richmond police cars. Just below that is a concrete 'shelf' that extends into the river, and a large pool. I was thinking of placing the tub in the middle there, so people could look down from the bridge and see it, and also walk out for a closer view.

Another idea I had was to still do a photoshoot of sorts, but do in a fashion similar to political libel. Create an ad campaign to vote for Mr. A.Bathtub for Mayor. A slogan would be something along the lines of, "we're cleaning up this town!" and pictures would be taken on top of buildings, parks, by the river, etc...

I'm not 100% sure what I'm going to do yet, but I do have an idea.

Shenandoah Park

This weekend I went out to the Shenandoah Park with my family. While I forgot to bring my digital camera, my sister had hers, which I borrowed frequently:

"Girl goes green, grows massive legs"

Slightly more interesting was this pebble:

I found it there in that exact position - shaped like a heart, I thought it was cute overlooking the waterfall:

The trip was fun, but I wish I remembered my camera (it was in my bookbag). I think finding that pebble was the best part, and it does really look like a little heart. Yes, even nature can produce love of its own.

Kansas, St. Louis & [More] Chicago Earth Art

Ashley posted some pictures of Chicago Earth Art. I was in Chicago a few summers ago heading back from a road trip to Kansas, and took some pictures of the same token sculptures:

Kansas still holds most of the national wheat reserves, the buildings the wheat is stored in are gigantic monoliths taking up the land:

And more decay as seen in St. Louis... however, although the buildings are decaying and the Earth is actively claiming them back, some parts are covered in graffiti (murals) which adds a nice touch to them. There is no reason why buildings themselves or the resources inside them cannot be re-used.

An old electric plant (and bicycle path alongside):

Monday, November 24, 2008

Soviet Architecture

As I was hunting through more architecture photographs I have, I came across some pictures which from an exhibit at the MoMA a couple of years ago. They are photographs of Soviet Architecture after the 1917 October revolution, and [as far as I know] before Stalin usurped power. I find them very compelling, and a great example of how buildings can have a dialogue with the Earth.

Picture from Moscow, post-revolution. Moscow was chosen as the new capital after the revolution (the old was St. Petersburg). I believe this (and the other) designs were completed in the early-mid 1920s.

A picture of a GOELRO Electric Plant (from 1920). The plaque reads, "Lenin's famous statement that Communism is 'the power of the Soviets plus electricity' found concrete expression across the landscape of the Soviet Union."

More plants and structures, external and internal views:

Update: Managed to find this NY Times article talking about the same exhibit.

Additional Encounters on the Third Rock (From the Sun)

I biked out to the U of R campus to see what (if anything) I could find... the most interesting thing? This parking sign, which I shall call, "The ingenious private universities produce."

I challenge anyone to make logical sense of that sign. The way I interpret it, visitors, those who do not attend U of R, can park there 365/24/7. Faculty can park from 7am-9pm for 30 minute intervals, but students are prohibited from 7:30am-3pm Monday through Friday. What a strange sign!

I think this also gets at a deeper issue of instantiating claim over particular geographic areas. U of R is private, so it owns the land. Presumably, they can dictate any terms they like on their 'private property'. But what does the Earth get to say in this? Absolutely nothing! U of R decides when people can park, when U of R says so. Parking times are not arranged by say, scarcity to take weight off the Earth, or discourage people from driving and leaving vehicles where they want. Sure, it may be a bit too strong to claim the Earth should decide, but surely, things such as parking locations, times, and modes of transportation should be organized in a sensical and democratic fashion.

Back at VCU, I continued my hunt for some work. This next picture I like to call, "Caution! Beware of Falling Bricks."

"Tough times, tough measures: Ladder space immediately available for rent, excellent perch and view."

And lastly, I just found this funny:

"Holes demand equal rights above and below ground"

Mini-Project: Self-Propelled Vehicles on the Earth (and Beyond!)

Today I spent some time wandering campus looking for work. I came across a building near the library, and, while taking some photographs had an idea spring into my head. I'm an Economics major, and last semester I took a Transportation Economics course at VCU. In urban environments, cycling to and from class, work, and even to the bodega near your house is typically faster, healthier, and more convenient than taking your car everywhere. The aerial pictures were taken from a roof.

A regular sedan seats 5 people, let's see how much space 5 bikes take up on the road:

Although unmanned, these 5 bikes are less than the width of an average car, and take up half the parking space. On the road, end-to-end they have an extremely small profile allowing other traffic to pass, and side-by-side riders could be in a formation about the length and width of a normal car.

After this, I had some free time and more ideas, which leads me to...

When self-propelled vehicles make a journey to the moon:

Location: Pollack Building, 5th floor

Thursday, November 20, 2008

Cairns on Grace St.

These are two pictures of the cairns I found on Grace St. the other day. They were spotted outside of the 700 block, between the old English Department and the West Grace Dorm. They were in groups of mostly 3, a couple groups had 2 in them. Who knows, perhaps someone was leaving their own trail so they may find their way home in their drunken stupor.

In the second photo, you can vaguely see the other groups in the distance. These pictures were taken with my cell-phone before I started carrying my digicam, so sorry for the poor quality.

Skeletons, Decay, and Buildings

When you look at the human body, you can get a rough idea of the skeleton beneath, but it's nearly impossible to see how the bones work together, how they function together. Similarly, when I look at a building, I wonder where the structures are welded beneath, where the bones are and how they interact to keep the building functioning and alive.

During the same trip to the St. Nicholas breaker, I saw a building which captured that idea better than any before. Like a body shortly after death it was somehow still erect, despite the fact that it was decaying and no longer functioning.

I was able to find work by Jason Taylor, exploring similar concepts, but underwater instead of above land. He goes says, "The sculpture proposes growth, chance, and natural transformation. It shows how time and environment impact on and shape the physical body."

Andy Goldsworthy also speaks of decay in his work: "Movement, change, light, growth and decay are the lifeblood of nature, the energies that I try to tap through my work. I need the shock of touch, the resistance of place, materials and weather, the earth as my source. Nature is in a state of change and that change is the key to understanding. I want my art to be sensitive and alert to changes in material, season and weather. Each work grows, stays, decays. Process and decay are implicit. Transience in my work reflects what I find in nature."

What does that say? Everything is temporary - change is implicit. Dialectics can be applied to everything: thought, processes, buildings, it's an evolution in itself. Decay and death are important processes which let us learn and grow from them.

St. Nicholas Breaker

I have always had a special appreciation for large industrial buildings - not on the level of exploitation that occurs within them, but for the buildings themselves. Massive structures asserting their dominance over the land. Below are some pictures I've taken that I think illustrate multiple themes found throughout life, especially with decay.

These pictures are from Mahanoy City, PA. They are pictures of the St. Nicholas coal breaker.

That was the breaker then... here are some pictures of it now:

And inside...

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