Art and a Living Planet

admin • August 14, 2013

In the world of activism, it’s often important to take a step back at times, perhaps go for a walk and gaze up at the sky, in order to remember what you’re really fighting for. When you say it just in words, it sounds so deceptively simple: “a living planet”; “future generations”; “a fair, just world”. Sometimes we need to take a moment to reflect on how profound these ideas really are. Each of these is a huge ambition that is, by definition, global in scale. None of us can ever really hope to comprehend the sheer vastness of this fragile planet, and all of the life that it holds – nor can we ever understand the hopes and dreams of all who walk upon it, or will walk here in the future. Some ideas, like love, go beyond words, and our hope for a better future is one of them.

We toss out cliché expressions at times like “it’s a small world” – but it’s not, really. On the individual human scale everything about this planet is overwhelmingly quite large – it’s only when we measure ourselves as a collective that we start to see humanity’s true ‘global-sized’ impacts. When you think about it, that sense of scale is perhaps one of the key things we’re trying to preserve here: like the feeling of humility you get when you go out for a walk in the wild, and realize how truly small you are in comparison. We must remember we are but visitors here, passing through something that is truly beyond our comprehension.

What does all this have to do with art? Creativity? Human expression? We are not the first to be confronted with the immensity of existence. Art connects us to a long history of people exploring and responding to their place in the world, and helps us to deepen this connection. It humbles us in its reminder that we will always be but one small part of the huge community of creation here, and that there is a massive world out there, and a massive universe beyond, that will forever hold its own mysteries and intrigue. Human expression is our way of responding to existence, and appreciating, rather than dismissing, how profound, mysterious and precious it really is. Expression also promotes far greater engagement with the world, and engagement is exactly what our world needs if we are to turn it around.

We’ve added a new perk to our crowd fund that affirms our belief in the role of human expression in making a better world: unique vintage animal die-cuts, hand-framed. These silkscreened animals date from the 50’s and 60’s (predigital printing) and were originally used throughout North America as promotional plaques for hunting and fishing lodges. Preserved within their original press sheets, one can tell that they were all carefully printed, and are now unique reminders of the beautiful, mysterious wildlife that shares in the broader living community with us. They’re a fitting testament to the most basic thing that we are fighting for: life, in all its diversity and splendor.

The press sheets were discovered by Canadian artist Richard Watts (rawart2.com) while sourcing reclaimed materials for a barn renovation of Crowe River Studio out near Havelock, Ontario. Watts will also be mounting and hand-framing each piece ordered. Visit our crowd fund site for more details while supplies last, and take home a unique piece of history. Let’s keep up the fight for life, and remember that we really are holding much of creation today in our shared hands.

http://www.indiegogo.com/projects/face-the-change