Born lucky? Well maybe.
I've been thinking of taking a break or at least slowing down a little as everything has been a bit frantic lately. I just seem to be churning them out (churning is probably the wrong word), but it feels almost obsessive. But then everything I make is true and honest, comes from the heart and means something to me. I blame the weather. It has been so damn nice lately that I loathe to waste good sunshine
When I got up to go to work this morning the weather had certainly changed. After more than a fortnight of no rain (quite unusual in the NW of England), it was absolutely chucking it down. The garden will be grateful and an enforced rest from making anything will do me good. Or so I thought.
Come the afternoon we were back to lovely sunshine and I just can't waste an opportunity.
I have two maple trees in the garden in pots. One produces deep red leaves in Spring and the other pinky/yellowy/orange. They are small and delicate and beautiful. I had in mind yet another circle with leaves pinned to it so that it looked like the flaming sun. Then I was going to enclose it in a box.
After painstakingly pinning the little leaves on the frame they soon became limp and wouldn't stay upright. This wasn't going to work but ignoring what I knew to be true I went looking for a patch of sun to take a picture. I found a place and I couldn't ignore it anymore - this really wasn't going to work. 99 times out 100 I get something, to score a blank is rare for me. So, I thought, what I will need to do is prepare another frame with little struts to hold up the edges of the leaves, that might work and in a few days try again.
As I was out in the park anyway I went to recce different spots to see where the sun hit at this time of the evening when the light is nice. I traipsed passed several courting couples on park benches. Fortunately they were embarrased to see me so the score was one each as I faked nonchalance as I was carrying leaves on sticks! What people make of me I do wonder.
Just before I was about to leave the park I tried one more place, nice spot with the sun in a perfect place. It'll be my luck that the sun won't come out again for a while, I thought, but I can make something here and get a good shot when I next have an opportunity.
Then I noticed in front of me a load of Snakeshead Fritillaries planted everywhere. After never seeing any before now I have seen them three times recently. And next I spy a lovely red maple, so I inspected its leaves. Then the killer - lonely on its own in a corner was the most wonderful japanese maple adorned with gorgeous pink leaves that were much more robust and perfect for what I orginally had in mind. Added to that the light was perfect and these pictures are just as they came out of the camera. I didn't have much time as the sun was dropping fast but where I think I have lost something in quick and sloppy construction I made up for it with fantastic contrast.
It has convinced me to not slow up just yet. The last few years we have had lovely weather either side of the summer - April/May and September/October and in between it has rained. So I must make the most of my opportunities as it is quite a while until September.
Monday, April 27, 2009
Maple Sun
Sunday, April 26, 2009
Circle Cube - Caged Star
Now after spouting allsorts of arty-farty nonsense yesterday I had another idea. Make six circles and join them together to make a cube. Why? Because it might look cool! No concept required just a cool thing to create.
But in the tradition of my land art I did learn a few things today. I learnt that if you mount a sculpture on a flimsy twig then the wind will keep bending it over and you won't be able to take it's photo.
I discovered that if you are unlucky and you want the sun to come out to illuminate what you have made then that isn't going to happen when there is a single stripe of black cloud, with bright sunshine either side and that stripe blocks the sun for a few hours. I noticed the wind was less when the sun was in but as soon as it came out so did huge clouds of midges that would get in the picture (and my ears, nose and down my socks), and they would only go away when the wind started to get up and then the sculpture would move too much to get a picture!
And one final thing I learnt was that not all pictures look best with the sun. After two hours of waiting for it to come out it turns out the best pictures were had two hours previously when the sun was in! Go figure.
Sometimes an object is nicer in real life than in a photo, and sometimes it is the other way around. For me this one is the former. But I have other plans for the cube sometime later.
Sycamore Sun Square
Once again I had no idea what to make so I went for an early stroll around the park and the cemetry to see what was growing. I was starting to feel that no inspiration would come and I would have to go home with my tail between my legs. I haven't failed to build anything for ages. Then I found a coppiced syacmore tree (maybe more than one in a cluster) with wonderful large leaves - each one perfect. I liked the sycamore circles I had done previously and wanted to do something that showed off the structure of the leaves.
Sycamore leaves have a near right angled vein structure. Some have obtuse some acute angles and then there are the ones with a near perfect 90 degree angle. What else to make but a square?
For good bokeh you need to be able to get below the sculpture ideally with a dark background. This presented a problem. The wind was strengthening and as I carried it around looking for a suitable spot the wind was starting to shred the leaves. There was no way I was going to be able to put it up somewhere high as would only last seconds, instead I found a semi-sheltered spot behind some gorse bushes. I pinned diagonal struts across the square to strengthen it and hoped that it would survive long enough for a photo. It seemed ok and when I left it there it was still intact.
This was going to make the photography much more difficult. So after grovelling around in the sheep poo and gorse thorns this is what I came away with.
My Land Art images are now available on RedBubble. If there are any specific images you are interested in then please let me know.
Saturday, April 25, 2009
Homage to the Sand Martin
Another bright and breezy day today and I think I had the best of it this morning. It's clouded over now, the wind has built up and the garden which has been praying for some rain may have it's wish granted.
I wanted to work with mud and clay today and make something with holes, not exactly sure what so I headed down to the River Lune to search for some inspiration. The woods were vibrant with a carpet of bluebells and the air was rich with the pungent aroma of wild garlic. It's on mornings like these that it is a joy to be alive.
I walked down to the crook to see what was left of any previous sculptures and I hunted for a new location to build something. At the back of my mind I thought of returning to the place where I made the Seed Tree but as there is no water there, and the lack of rain meant the ground was hard I decided that I would have to make something near to the river where I could gather clay and water.
I filled my bucket with rich sandy clay and mixed it with river water. Now what I am going to build?
With Spring comes an explosion of life. The air is filled with clouds of newly born insects and this heralds the return of the swallows, swifts and martins and the River Lune is an important site for sand martins. It was thrilling to see them again darting backwards and forwards across the water stripping the air of the swarming clouds of insects. They nest in a very specific environment and this is why the Lune is important. Its steep sandy banks make perfect places for them to burrow tunnels for their nests. All along this section the banks are peppered with nest entrances reminiscent of crumbling buildings riddled with bullets holes in a war zone.
The return of the sand martins from their overwintering in Africa meant that I had to choose another place to create a sculpture. I did not want to disturb any nests or the birds themselves and yet I wanted to use their environment for the sculpture itself. So armed with a bucketful of clay and sand taken from the bank where they nest (not actually near any nests or where the birds were - but the same type of place), water from the river that feeds the life here I decided to head up to the place I originally planned on going. It just meant I would have to take the materials with me. Man oh man that bucket was heavy. Oh how I cursed it as I lugged it up the hill! Fortunately it was still early and no-one was there to spot me struggling.
I selected a dead tree branch and inserted it into a small hole before fashioning holes reminiscent of sand martin nest entrances from the mud I had carried with me. I placed the branch so that it overlooks the River Lune, where the sand martins have returned to and where I collected the clay and the water.
A peregrine flew past and a buzzard with a large notch in its wing was being mobbed by a crow while people walking their dogs trudged up and down the hill.
A few people stopped to ask me what I was doing and we chatted about land art. One lady seemed very interested and came back to chat some more and we discussed the philosophy of land art, Andy Goldsworthy, living in the moment and the joy of being. Her beautiful and cheeky labrador took exception to this, proceeded to dig holes and eat turf then jump up at me as if to say "stop talking! - Why don't you play with me?"
All in all a fine morning.
My Land Art images are now available on RedBubble. If there are any specific images you are interested in then please let me know.
Friday, April 24, 2009
Tornado Cairn
I went back for another attempt at building the diamond cairn. This was about the fourth try, it was quite windy and the previous ones all collapsed when only half built.
The reason I've given it the name "tornado" (other than being pretentious) is because I think it looks like a spinning top or gyroscope. The slight tilt it has, to me anyway, makes it look like it is spinning.
Despite the strong breeze this one remained upright and still was as I walked back.
While I was building it it moved quite a lot but I think this helped. When all the movement is one way it doesn't take much for it to reach it's tipping point and then it is over. With this one it seemed to move over the central balance point but not just one direction, it moved backwards and forwards. I think this might have been important for it to dissapate the force of the breeze and remain upright. Either that or I was just lucky.
It will be cool if it survives until tomorrow.
Another reminder that my Land Art images are now available on RedBubble. If there are any specific images you are interested in then please let me know.
Accidental Landart & Images Added to RedBubble
I finally have loaded up some images for sale on RedBubble. I have received back proofs of my images back from RedBubble to ensure that my monitor is correctly calibrated and what I have received looks fine.
All my photos are large digital files taken on a Digital SLR using Canon L lenses. They are pin-sharp even at the largest size so if you wish to buy any of my images be assured that whatever size you choose the image should be of maximum quality. I have taken some time over this to get it right to make sure that your purchases are as good as they can be.
If there are any particular images that you want me to make available then please let me know and I will do that for you as soon as I can.
Thanks again to everyone for your kind comments and words of encouragement. They really do mean a great deal.
Richard
Ps. This photo was taken out the back of Williamson Park near to The Colonnade at Standen Park. I think the plastic sheeting is laid down to grow courgetttes or other produce. When I spent six months picking the alien nasty things that they are (I am not bitter about picking them 7 days a week for six months honest) this is what was on the ground. Still I prefer to think that the farmers round here have an artistic bent and are making a statement to the world that everything must be stripey.
Wednesday, April 22, 2009
Diamond Cairn
I am totally fed up with Spring now, all those flowers and leaves and colours are really getting on my nerves! (just kidding)
It was a bit overcast this afternoon so I went for a stroll in the hills. I wasn't sure what to build so I just messed around seeing what took shape.
The square rock serving as the base under the point of the diamond wasn't flat and gently rocked if pushed. Each new layer had to be added two at a time to counterbalance. I was really surprised to get it to stay up first go but it didn't last long, 5 minutes and it toppled.
Monday, April 20, 2009
4 Colour Sun Wheel
4 Colour Sun Wheel, originally uploaded by e s c h e r.
Back at work today. And it was dull, dull, dull. So of course I day-dreamed of land art. I wanted to bring together the experimental ideas I have been trying out recently. Colours, circles and sunlight. I wanted to take more care and be more precise too. Fortunately rhododendron leaves are robust and can take a little more abuse than the fresh new leaves but still I cursed every time I snapped a thorn or stuck one into the end of my finger.
We are fortunate to have wonderful park in Lancaster, full of diverse plants, hidden nooks and crannies, sandstone outcrops and magical hidden corners. Unfortunately the windless evening proved popular with the midges too and they were really in their element nibbling my ears.
I seem to be blessed when it comes to finding the right conditions for photography. The light was perfect and the background quite striking and in a few short minutes I had some nice pictures recorded. The low evening light meant that the high constrast look I like was achieved without any post processing. These are just as they came out of the camera apart from a little cropping. Fortunate indeed. A few minutes later the sun dropped enough so that the wheel was no longer illuminated, I had arrived at exactly the right time.
Sunday, April 19, 2009
Sycamore Circles
When we got home from Coniston it was still early and I wanted to do something else before finishing up for the day.
This Spring for me has been really interesting. Most years I go trekking in Nepal for the Spring but this year I have stayed at home.
I don't know whether I do this every Spring or whether this is something new but I am noticing so many more colours and things growing than I ever have before. Either I do this every year or all this land art has attuned my senses to what is happening all around. I don't really know the answer but all the same I am really enamoured by all the wonderful plants that I have been noticing, the flowers and interesting leaves and a plethora of colours I thought were reserved for Autumn.
One thing in particular I have noticed is the huge quantity of new trees below existing trees. I have never noticed this before but just about every sycamore and beech I have looked at has dozens and dozens of tiny saplings sprouting underneath. Perhaps when the parent tree has its full covering of leaves these saplings are starved of light and disappear. I do not know but this discovery is fascinating to me all the same. I guess this has always been true and I just haven't noticed before but it makes me think what other hidden wonders there are to discover.
So following the current theme of sunlight and leaves I made some little stick circles and pinned fresh sycamore leaves to them. I considered trimming the extra leaf around the edges but I liked the shape of the whole leaf so I kept them intact.
These seemed to be particularly fragile. I wanted to take them up to Baines Crag at Littledale but didn't think they would make it that far so this picture was taken in my garden as I didn't think I would be able to get anything else.
When I went back out there later they were still fine despite the breeze so I went up to Littledale anyway. (Hi to the cyclist I met up there who was looking for directions to Clitheroe but meant Caton. Bit of a slog from there)!
Despite breaking one on the walk up there they did eventually hold together whilst gently flapping in the breeze. I left them up there so they can enjoy the view and gradually go back to where they came from.
I imagine this would work better with older, tougher leaves but by the time they are more robust the twigs will have stiffened and will be more difficult to coax into a circle.
Coniston Windmill Stars
We went to Coniston water today in the Lake District.
Early on it was quiet but it wasn't long before the idyll was disturbed by a motor boat doing zig-zags without much consideration for the broken peace and quiet. (sigh)
First of all I built a caged rock out on a little rock island but the water was so cold it really hurt my feet so I gave up with that one. Later on the water warmed up as was much more pleasant.
More families with kids and dogs in tow appeared and we were entertained by one dad who stripped off to his Marks and Sparks pants (shorts for you guys over the pond) and decided to spend his time doing cartwheels! It was quite graphic and it was one (well more than one actually) of those things I wish I hadn't seen!
The pebbles at the edge of the lake were quite uninspring being a uniform grey colour and the only other materials available were dead bracken, dead oak leaves, grass and thorns. Not very inspiring and I struggled for ideas. At the moment I am really enjoying the fresh new growth but there was little of that to be had where we were.
This is what I came up with in the end.
Laurel Arch
After I had made and photographed the leaf sculpture there was plenty of time to try something else. I had collected a few different materials but I had only used a few of them.
When I was at primary school aged 5 or 6 we had a horse chestnut tree overhanging the playground. It would drop leaves and conkers and keep us all amused.
One thing we did with leaves was to curl them over and stick the stalk through to make a tube.
I am not a very knowledgeable gardener so I am guessing when I say this is a laurel. But I did the same with these leaves and created an arch, then made a curtain from the flowers that came with it.
Normally I wouldn't pick flowers or new leaves from a plant. However I am selective with the leaves I take. I try to find a vigourous plant with lots of leaves and select only a few. That way I have no adverse affect on it and I can go and make something without worrying if I am doing things I shouldn't.
Saturday, April 18, 2009
Leaf Colour Stripe Swing
I got home from work early yesterday afternoon, the weather was fine and sunny. Perfect conditions to make something.
And yet... I couldn't think of anything to make! My normal way of working is to go for a wander and just see what comes to mind. I look for inspiration by looking at the natural materials all around. But it just wasn't happening yesterday afternoon. So instead I went home, drew the curtains and switched on the playstation. Shame on me!
Working intuitively is a great pleasure when you make something you like but with it comes some pressure. After each new sculpture is captured in the camera it is like going back to square one. As there is no plan or idea of what I will do next I just have to hope that some inspiration comes and I have no idea whether it will. Up to now I have been lucky - the ideas do come - but I fear one day they will dry up. I was hoping that yesterday was not an example of that.
The internet and Flickr bring with them new ways of displaying your artwork. Traditionally artists would display their work at a gallery or in a book and this would afford them the time to prepare and to choose their favourite work to display and give them a chance to get everything right before showing it to anyone.
When I make a sculpture I upload the photos within an hour or two of completing it and with this approach comes some more pressure. If you make something that seems to be good then I feel that the next effort must be as good, better or more original. As I strive to produce good quality artwork this leads on to having to produce even more. This coupled with the fact that I have no idea what I am going to make until I get out there means it can be a nervy experience, hoping that what is made will be worthy enough. I have been meaning to write a blog entry about this subject as I feel this new way of displaying your work to an audience is interesting and with it brings new approaches to doing and sharing artwork. 95% of what I make is shared here, the good the bad and the ugly. I wonder how many people display their artwork in such a way? But still this approach seems to work for me and with it I am granted a lot of pleasure. The pressure spurs me on yet I still feel it!
Anyway I am rambling now!
Imagine if you will those balmy summer evenings with a light breeze. The image I awoke with this morning was of a hammock hung under a tree gently swinging in the breeze. I wanted to make something that captured that feeling - of bright summer sunshine, vibrant growth and the ambience of a care-free summer evening. In my minds eye I imagined sculptures hanging from a tree twisting and swinging lightly in the wind.
I got up early and went for a stroll around the park, cemetery and woods. Firstly I found scattered red leaves blown into my garden from a nearby shrub shedding old leaves. Then I found some lush green new foliage freshly growing on a large bush. After another few minutes walking I found another large rhododendron and it had a few fading yellow leaves ready to drop so I grabbed those too. Now an idea was forming in my head - something that would display these different colours at their best, a taste of Autumn in Spring. Finally as I headed home I found another rhododendron that had had a fire set underneath it, some of the outer leaves had been scorched and gone brown. Now I had four colours to use and bright sunshine with which to display them.
I constructed a frame from reed grass and thorns and hung this from a frame made from sticks. Once constructed it swung gently backwards and forwards in the breeze. This was exactly the feeling I was looking for, that hammock gently oscillating underneath the branch. I hope you can see this in the accompanying video and the ambience I was aiming for comes across. Carefree and colourful - all the happiness of Spring!
Leaf Colour Stripe Swing Video
Leaf Swing, originally uploaded by e s c h e r.
As with all videos on Flickr the best idea is to click play then pause and let it all download before watching it. If you want to the hear the birdsong (and cars, aeroplanes and motortobikes) then you can watch with the sound up.
Pebble Square Diptych - one week elapsed
This was created for the Land Art Connections Project on Flickr. This months theme being Time.
I created this about a month ago. The top picture was from that day, I built it on the platform so that it would be set against the shallow water of the river.
A week later I went back along to that section of the River Lune to see if it was still there. Whilst I was walking along the bank approaching the place I was disappointed to see it had gone. "Someone must have kicked it over" I thought.
A little way along my partner had made another sculpture, a line of stones along the waters edge. As I approached I realised that the river level had dropped considerably. The line of pebbles was now beached feet away from the water.
I realised then that my pebble square sculpture might indeed still be there as I was looking for something in the water when I was searching.
Lo and behold as I went over to the spot there it was camouflaged amongst the shingle. I was very surprised to see it there! Whilst it was very obvious when on the water it wasn't until I was right upon it that I could see it.
It hadn't rained at all in the intervening week so I guess it shouldn't have been a surprise to discover the level had dropped. I try to reveal aspects of nature and its cycles with my art and returning a week later had shown me a little about the behaviour of the river.
Also you may notice that in the original picture the orange/brown stones in the top right hand corner are darker than orange ones in the bottom row. At the time I though they were different types of sandstone but once the pebbles had dried it became clear that they were the same but one set was wetter than the other.
Wednesday, April 15, 2009
Does anyone want something built in their garden or on their land?
Recently someone has very kindly offered me the opportunity to create some sculptures on their land. If anyone wants me to come along and make something in their garden or on a piece of land they own then please get in touch and I'll see what I can sort out. I am open to any suggestions that anyone may have so feel free to drop me a line if you are interested.
Wintry Cumbrian fells from Clougha Pike and Sun God Cairn
Wintry Cumbrian fells from Clougha Pike and Sun God Cairn, originally uploaded by e s c h e r.
Here is some video footage of the Cumbrian fells covered in snow shot from Birk Bank on Clougha back in February.
This is from when I built the Sun God Cairn which can be seen at the end of the clip. The views were absolutely sensational that day. Earlier that morning the light for photography was amonsgt the best I had experienced in this part of the world and with the snow on the mountains and the low bank of cloud, I really couldn't have asked for more.
Once again it is best to click play then pause to let the whole thing download before playing it. I do not have the capacity to deinterlace my videos, Flickr's Progressive scan codec makes some of videos a little weird so if you experience any problems watching it in HD then switch to low res.
Sunday, April 12, 2009
Dock Leaf Sun Squares
Well I liked the dock sun circle so much and with the sun still shining I just had to make something along the same theme. By the time I had finished the third one the leaf in the first was starting to wilt, so I had to be quick to set them up and grab a picture.
These are made out of the same sticks as the vortex cone, pinned together with thorns with a dock leaf section in the middle.
Colin: If you are cycling up to Littledale tomorrow (and you read this) then I left these there. They are right above the smaller crag to the right of the parking area (if facing uphill towards the col and the farm). They might not make it through the night though. Those sheep up there will eat anything!
Vortex Spiral
Some of the pictures I took yesterday were technically poor. They were focussed on the back of the cone and the front wasn't sharp. Fine for shrunken photos but not good for printing. It was another beautiful day today so I headed back up to Littledale to take some more pictures in the same spot.
Being a glutton for punishment I remade that troublesome 5th layer and had to spend more time reconstructing it. It was worth it though and the whole thing sat together better.
I didn't really notice how nice the shadow looked until I looked at the photos at home yesterday, so this time I got some more of it in particular. The sun was high up and strong meaning strong contrast and a great shadow. I am glad I made the effort.
Saturday, April 11, 2009
Vortex Cone
An alternative title for this would be ARRRGGGHHH!
What a total pain in the backside this was. I had to carry it up onto the rocks to take the photos and several sections came apart as I did so. I picked a spot and started to assemble it. Each time I would get another layer fixed on, one underneath would come loose. This happened over and over again to the point where I wanted to throw it off the cliff! Finally I did get it fully assembled then the sun went in, the wind got up and blew it over! Grrrrrrr...
So I started again trying to assemble it, perhaps twenty times before I got it ready again. Now ready with my camera I looked at it through the viewfinder, something wasn't right. It needed to be straighter. So I went right ahead and undid what had just taken me half an hour to do. I know, "anal" doesn't quite say it.
As I tried to get the 5th from the top section on it split, snapped the thorns holding it together and pinged open. No! Very carefully I reassembled this circle and hoped that it would just hold together long enough to get the rest on top. Finally I managed it an hour and a half later, fully assembled and ready to go. Yet it still wasn't symmetrical enough to my eye. Now, though, it had reached the point where any more fiddling would have meant its demise and I would have to go home with no shots at all. That's ephemeral land art for you - you can only push it so far.
This is made entirely from thorns, sticks and twigs - nothing else. I had no plans today for what I was going to do or where I was going to do it. It is a fine warm day, there is nice light and beautiful skies so I just had to do something (what was it I said about typical Easter weather)? When I awoke this morning the first thing that popped into my head was a cone made out of concentric circles. I didn't know if it would be possible but I thought I would try. The result isn't as neat and tidy as I would have liked, hopefully the next attempt (if the therapy will help me forget the tribulations with this one) will be neater.
I liked the spiral shadow this cast, that is why I chose the name for this sculpture. This is another where I cannot decide which photos are best.
Friday, April 10, 2009
Dock Leaf Sun Circle
The weather was typical for Easter. Overcast, dull and drizzly. I gathered some materials locally and spent the day at home working on some new ideas. I've been practicing making circles with newly grown shrubs, twigs and branches and I made a miniature bowl with beech leaves and a concentric circle design. All for another day.
I wanted to do something with new green leaves and so I collected some dock leaves and pinned them to a circular frame I had made. It was just crying out for some sunlight to make it look its best.
The weather was kind to me and as I headed up to the hills a few breaks in the cloud started to appear and soon after it brightened up more. The breeze was very light, which was fortunate as this piece was extremely flimsy, but it seemed as the sun broke through so did the wind start to intensify. Each section of leaf started to flap or come away from the frame. This can be the most frustrating (but also most satisfying) part of ephemeral land art: trying to keep it together long enough to takes its photograph. It collapsed soon after getting these shots.
In keeping with the ethos of my land art, this sculpture demonstrates the new growth of spring. The fresh twig growth means that it is possible to make a circle as they are pliable and soft enough to shape and to hold together. Later in the season this would not be possible. The delicate new dock leaves displaying their fresh green-ness reveal something about Spring too.
I can't decide which picture is best hence the gaggle of shots presented here, and there are still more that I wanted to post.
Using thorns and leaves is difficult, that is why there are so many holes in the leaves. They tear and break so easily. One day I want to be skillful enough to make something like this perfectly so the green is a solid slab of colour. There is always something new to learn and techniques to perfect. I wouldn't want it any other way!
Tuesday, April 07, 2009
Spore in Motion
Spore in Motion, originally uploaded by e s c h e r.
It's been very windy today so it was time to unleash the spore!
It tried very hard to spread its genetic material but it couldn't roll for long before it became too broken to move. Let's hope it was successful and many baby spores are the result.
(The best way to play videos is to press play then pause so the whole thing downloads. Then you can play it all without it stopping. This especially required if Flickr is slow or has the hiccups).
Ps. Apologies for the quality. This was fimed in rich 1080i HD but the recoding on Flickr really ruins the quality. Still you get the idea!
Sunday, April 05, 2009
Dandelion and Hazel Spheres
This is what I wanted to make yesterday but the cold-shy dandelions meant it wasn't possible.
Still, I have learnt a lot about dandelions this week. I saw one appear last week but I couldn't find any others. When I was driving home one afternoon a few days ago suddenly there were hundreds that had flowered in unison. Especially by the road outside the university. However at work the next day (40 odd miles away) there were very few. But then the day after that they sprouted altogether there too. It seems that their flowering is daylight or temperature related and when they do flower they seem to do so all at the same time, at least they do in the same area.
I knew that they closed up at night but I also learnt that if it is cold and windy they stay closed up, as they did yesterday. I think it needs to be at least 12 degrees C for them to open.
Spring is finally here (I am sure it will take a break over Easter - always does!), and it gladdens the heart to say so.
Dandelion Tower
Today the morning is bright and warm. Warm enough for the dandelions to open their flowers.
This sculpture is constructed from sections of reed grass, pinned with thorns with a chain of hazel rings hanging down, each with a dandelion held in the middle. Everything was collected nearby.
There was a light breeze and it was making it very tough trying to get this sculpture to stand up long enough to take its picture.
Now Spring has arrived and my normal trick of picking a beautiful spot to take a photo and then building something is proving to be more difficult to do as the materials I am now using are in fields, woodland and parks. It is more difficult to take a striking photo in these places. Over the next few months I will have to try and bring my photography up to the same level for these places.
Saturday, April 04, 2009
Hazel Balls
It's still cold and windy and the dandelions don't want to show their faces so I am experimenting with a few ideas before I can make the sculpture that I have in mind.
Hazel Box
The temperature has dropped today after several days of warmth. The first dandelions appeared a few days ago and I want to do something with them.
The drop in temperature means none of the flowers have opened today, now it is lunchtime and I am still waiting.
It is also very windy so anything fragile would not survive. I have had to resort to some indoor photography until the weather improves and the dandelions show their little yellow faces.
This box is made from hazel twigs with a line of tiny, fresh hazel leaves hanging in the middle. The have only appeared in a last few days and are wrinkled like toes in the bath as they wait to expand to full size.
Thursday, April 02, 2009
Spore
I saw some great teasels by the side of the road on my way home from work and I just had to do something with them.
When I had time to stop one evening I parked up nearby and went to get them. I had neglected to take any gloves or anything to cut them down and I am now sporting several hundred splinters!
Once home I wove a ball from pliable twigs and inserted the teasels to create a three-dimensional star. I then went looking for somewhere to take a picture or two.
I must have four heads! Every car, cyclist and pedestrian who passed me just stared at me open mouthed! I got so fed up with them in the end (I can normally act oblivious but this was too much) that I just stared back. This resulted in a sudden realisation how much they were staring, a closed mouth and a rapid exit to be on their way.
I am sure I am sometimes an unusual sight (especially first thing in the morning) but hasn't anyone seen someone clutching a giant spore before? I mean come on!
