It is not random.
"A Perfect Storm" by José González
https://jose-gonzalez.com/
Showing posts with label climate disaster. Show all posts
Showing posts with label climate disaster. Show all posts
Monday, May 11, 2026
Saturday, July 30, 2022
"There Were Bells" by Brian Eno
Brian Eno has been a special, prolific, inspirational, influential genius in his long and varied career creating music and art. Here, he sings his song "There Were Bells" from his album FOREVERANDEVERNOMORE out on October 14th, 2022. This live performance of "There Were Bells" was written by Brian Eno for a performance by him and his brother Roger at UNESCO World Heritage site, the Acropolis in August 2021. It was 45 degrees (113 degrees F) in Athens on the day of the concert with wildfires raging just outside the city, prompting his introductory comment "I thought, here we are at the birthplace of Western civilization, probably witnessing the end of it." This haunting track is taken from Eno’s new album FOREVERANDEVERNOMORE and provides a poignant reminder of the current climate emergency, a theme that is explored throughout the record.
His statement on his website says:
"I'm more and more convinced that our only hope of saving our planet is if we begin to have different feelings about it: specifically, if we become re-enchanted by the amazing improbability of life, suffer regret and even shame at what we've already lost and feel exhilarated by the challenges we face and what might yet become possible. Briefly, we need to fall in love again, but this time with nature, with Civilisation and with our hopes for the future."
--Brian Eno, July 2022
There were birds above, they sang the whole day through
And the sky revolves a pink to golden blue
All the roads through time weave the world's long rhyme
And it all unravels in a sea of pearls and swine
There were bells above that rang the whole day through
And the sky was shot with light and hazy blue
Early days of winter sun, all the days turned into one
All the sirens beckoning the crew
There were horns as loud as war that tore apart the sky
There were storms and floods of blood of human life
Never mind, my love, let's wait for the dove
Fly back to tell us there is a haven showing nigh
There were those who ran away
There were those who had to stay
In the end, they all went the same way
https://brian-eno.net/
I am not sure I can muster the same cautious optimism that Eno can. I created this blog many years ago now as a way to catalog things that inspired me, caught my eye or ear or heart, things I found beautiful. And it goes without saying, at least in my mind, that these things are products of a wondrous world full of the possibility of creation, a pure expression of the sheer existence of human beings. It all results from an inexhaustible élan toward creating, participating in a cycle that is breathtaking, overwhelming, and even a little frightening if one can stand still long enough to perceive it. It sounds silly but this little blog has been my way to remember this all, and I wrote in the "ABOUT" column to the right that I am dedicated to posting the positive, the fascinating, the beautiful, the interesting, the moving, and the inspiring and uplifting. But I also say that just like life, all of these things may often have a bit of melancholy or even sadness in them, which is what makes our time here so lovely and bittersweet and precious. And I cannot think of anything more melancholy or sad than the impending end of our civilization which, make no mistake, is on the way. I have alluded to these worries we all have in posts through the last many years but my focus, being on beauty, has not allowed me to address it directly.
Maybe like many of you, readers, I am sometimes too weary and worn down from it all to continue to hold it at bay. After all, we still have to carry on with our lives at this moment, in this place and time, for each of us. I still have to earn a living, manage my design company, pay a mortgage, feed and clothe myself. But every so often I just break down and cry. The impending disasters encroaching on us all weigh us all down whether we acknowledge it or not: the constant fires, and extreme heat fronts, and droughts, and storms, and hurricanes, and rising sea levels, and flooding, and burned bodies of humans and animals, and charred ruins of homes and towns, and drowned bodies of humans and animals, and migrants from climate disasters as well as murderous regimes, and senseless wars, and the deliberate cruelty and the denialism from so, so, so many fellow humans whose ignorance perpetuates it all. I was evacuated from my home here in California for almost 2 weeks because of a fire that threatened a large section of the state, and I hold directly responsible anyone who denied and still denies what is happening in front of their eyes, anyone who has thwarted efforts to address climate catastrophe, anyone who has voted for and supports any political figure in a position of power who could enact meaningful change but who simply has not out of misplaced religious fanaticism or willful ignorance and a wish to hold on to power. I was lucky enough to have my home and neighborhood spared but hundreds of my fellow citizens just a few miles away from me were not so lucky. Everything we are suffering now was laid out over 30 years ago and we have had all that time to make plans and changes but no, we are now witnessing the beginning of the end. Actually, it has been going on for a bit now so this is not the beginning, it is well underway. How far will it be allowed to go? How far will the destruction go? Will there be a day when I turn on my faucet and nothing comes out, when I have to leave my home for a migrant camp because the state is no longer inhabitable? Do I die of hunger or dehydration? Dysentery from crowded conditions? What is waiting for us all? And maybe we deserve whatever is waiting for us, if we can't figure out how to do this right. Maybe we all deserve to die. These thoughts and worries are painful and sometimes debilitating. At this moment, I am in a place where I can't be quiet, I have to cry out in a way I allow myself to do in life but have not here in virtual blog-land, until now.
So for this post, readers, I speak to you a tiny bit of what keeps me up at night, what churns my stomach, and what makes me tremble for my future and the future of us all. But I have to do some laundry, and get ready for my upcoming week. And tomorrow I will be back to sharing lovely art and special music with you all. It will make the time go by faster. And maybe, just maybe, it will have some sort of ripple effect...if you are inspired by what I share, maybe you can inspire someone else, and we can all, as Eno suggests, fall in love with civilization and ourselves, and find ourselves worthy of saving. Maybe.
His statement on his website says:
"I'm more and more convinced that our only hope of saving our planet is if we begin to have different feelings about it: specifically, if we become re-enchanted by the amazing improbability of life, suffer regret and even shame at what we've already lost and feel exhilarated by the challenges we face and what might yet become possible. Briefly, we need to fall in love again, but this time with nature, with Civilisation and with our hopes for the future."
--Brian Eno, July 2022
There were birds above, they sang the whole day through
And the sky revolves a pink to golden blue
All the roads through time weave the world's long rhyme
And it all unravels in a sea of pearls and swine
There were bells above that rang the whole day through
And the sky was shot with light and hazy blue
Early days of winter sun, all the days turned into one
All the sirens beckoning the crew
There were horns as loud as war that tore apart the sky
There were storms and floods of blood of human life
Never mind, my love, let's wait for the dove
Fly back to tell us there is a haven showing nigh
There were those who ran away
There were those who had to stay
In the end, they all went the same way
 |
| Brian Eno | Photo: Cecily Eno |
I am not sure I can muster the same cautious optimism that Eno can. I created this blog many years ago now as a way to catalog things that inspired me, caught my eye or ear or heart, things I found beautiful. And it goes without saying, at least in my mind, that these things are products of a wondrous world full of the possibility of creation, a pure expression of the sheer existence of human beings. It all results from an inexhaustible élan toward creating, participating in a cycle that is breathtaking, overwhelming, and even a little frightening if one can stand still long enough to perceive it. It sounds silly but this little blog has been my way to remember this all, and I wrote in the "ABOUT" column to the right that I am dedicated to posting the positive, the fascinating, the beautiful, the interesting, the moving, and the inspiring and uplifting. But I also say that just like life, all of these things may often have a bit of melancholy or even sadness in them, which is what makes our time here so lovely and bittersweet and precious. And I cannot think of anything more melancholy or sad than the impending end of our civilization which, make no mistake, is on the way. I have alluded to these worries we all have in posts through the last many years but my focus, being on beauty, has not allowed me to address it directly.
Maybe like many of you, readers, I am sometimes too weary and worn down from it all to continue to hold it at bay. After all, we still have to carry on with our lives at this moment, in this place and time, for each of us. I still have to earn a living, manage my design company, pay a mortgage, feed and clothe myself. But every so often I just break down and cry. The impending disasters encroaching on us all weigh us all down whether we acknowledge it or not: the constant fires, and extreme heat fronts, and droughts, and storms, and hurricanes, and rising sea levels, and flooding, and burned bodies of humans and animals, and charred ruins of homes and towns, and drowned bodies of humans and animals, and migrants from climate disasters as well as murderous regimes, and senseless wars, and the deliberate cruelty and the denialism from so, so, so many fellow humans whose ignorance perpetuates it all. I was evacuated from my home here in California for almost 2 weeks because of a fire that threatened a large section of the state, and I hold directly responsible anyone who denied and still denies what is happening in front of their eyes, anyone who has thwarted efforts to address climate catastrophe, anyone who has voted for and supports any political figure in a position of power who could enact meaningful change but who simply has not out of misplaced religious fanaticism or willful ignorance and a wish to hold on to power. I was lucky enough to have my home and neighborhood spared but hundreds of my fellow citizens just a few miles away from me were not so lucky. Everything we are suffering now was laid out over 30 years ago and we have had all that time to make plans and changes but no, we are now witnessing the beginning of the end. Actually, it has been going on for a bit now so this is not the beginning, it is well underway. How far will it be allowed to go? How far will the destruction go? Will there be a day when I turn on my faucet and nothing comes out, when I have to leave my home for a migrant camp because the state is no longer inhabitable? Do I die of hunger or dehydration? Dysentery from crowded conditions? What is waiting for us all? And maybe we deserve whatever is waiting for us, if we can't figure out how to do this right. Maybe we all deserve to die. These thoughts and worries are painful and sometimes debilitating. At this moment, I am in a place where I can't be quiet, I have to cry out in a way I allow myself to do in life but have not here in virtual blog-land, until now.
So for this post, readers, I speak to you a tiny bit of what keeps me up at night, what churns my stomach, and what makes me tremble for my future and the future of us all. But I have to do some laundry, and get ready for my upcoming week. And tomorrow I will be back to sharing lovely art and special music with you all. It will make the time go by faster. And maybe, just maybe, it will have some sort of ripple effect...if you are inspired by what I share, maybe you can inspire someone else, and we can all, as Eno suggests, fall in love with civilization and ourselves, and find ourselves worthy of saving. Maybe.
Tuesday, May 31, 2022
BEAUTY: Photography--Omar Victor Diop
Fine art photographer Omar Victor Diop created his Allegoria series to invite us to think critically about environmental justice, anthropocentricism, and our collective and individual responsibilities in securing more viable, liveable futures. His self portraits show him with species that are extinct or will certainly be in the next few decades, as well as referencing landscapes (and food) that are in peril. The artist's website says his work's "dramatic renditions borrow openly from different genres that include classical painting, universal religious iconography, and mid-century West African photographic studio portraiture, as well as Japanese ukiyo-e woodblock compositions from the Edo period—'pictures of the floating world.'"
https://www.omarvictor.com/
Sunday, January 9, 2022
Climate Catastrophe Change In A Chart
UK climate data scientist has charted the monthly/yearly change in global temperature from 1851 to 2020. We have always known it is not good news and here is the chart...
https://twitter.com/neilrkaye
Monday, October 19, 2020
Wednesday, September 16, 2020
Burning
We're on fire.
Climate Catastrophe is real.
Science is real.
Climate is different from weather.
This is not a "process" that is natural. It has not happened before.We are seeing Climate Catastrophe happen right before us. Everything that was predicted 20 years ago is happening now. Just as climatologists thought it would.
I was evacuated from my home, not knowing if it would survive or burn.
I have seen raining ash.
I have seen a dim sun in an orange sky.
I have struggled to breathe in air thick with smoke.
It is real.
Climate Catastrophe is real.
Science is real.
Climate is different from weather.
This is not a "process" that is natural. It has not happened before.We are seeing Climate Catastrophe happen right before us. Everything that was predicted 20 years ago is happening now. Just as climatologists thought it would.
I was evacuated from my home, not knowing if it would survive or burn.
I have seen raining ash.
I have seen a dim sun in an orange sky.
I have struggled to breathe in air thick with smoke.
It is real.
Saturday, May 16, 2020
The Miniature Apocalyptic Worlds of Nix and Gerber
I am amazed at the miniature worlds made by Lori Nix and Kathleen Gerber.
These were all made pre-virus, but these abandoned businesses have a special, eerie poignancy now.
Artist statement:
"I don’t really have a death wish, it just seems that way. For the last eight years my photographs have highlighted a fictional urban landscape ‘after’. An aquarium after a flood, a church after a fire, a beauty parlor after…who knows what. Mankind is gone and what remains are vacant fragments of buildings, a few slowly being reclaimed by nature. These photos began their lives as complex dioramas sculpted out of foam board, paint, plaster and wood. Built in great detail from scratch, the dioramas reflect their previous inhabitants’ daily lives.
As an artist, I have always taken inspiration from my surroundings. I grew up in the 1970’s in rural western Kansas. Every season brought with it a new disaster or weather phenomenon. As a child I personally experienced tornados, floods, blizzards and drought. I was never scared or upset by them because I had my parents to worry about the implications. Rather, these events brought excitement to a life that by most people’s standards was quite dull. I also grew up on steady diet of 1970’s television and cinema. Saturday night meant the Carroll Burnett Show, popcorn and a can of coke. My small Kansas town of Norton, population 3500, had a single movie house that ran Disney features on Saturday afternoon, and in the evenings it showed the genre that was popular at the time, dystopian cinema. It was in this small movie house reeking of popcorn and sticky floors that I was mesmerized by movies such as Planet of the Apes, Towering Inferno, Earthquake, and Airport‘76. As a six year old viewing these kinds of movies, I believe it had a profound effect on the art I create today. My work to date can be described as disaster mixed with subtle humor.
I began “The City” series after moving to New York in 1999. Surrounded by great architecture, skyscrapers, and bridges, the urban landscape couldn’t help but find its way into my work. Still a fan of dystopian entertainment, think Blade Runner, Alien, The Hunger Games, etc, my current series is a mashup of my new urban life and a look towards an apocalyptic future. “The City” imagines what New York City and Brooklyn would look like if suddenly mankind had disappeared."
Top to bottom: Bar; Beauty Shop; Casino; Chinese Take-Out; Circulation Desk; Control Room; Laundromat (day); Laundromat (night); Natural History; Subway; Anatomy Classroom
http://www.lorinix.net/
http://www.nixgerberstudio.com/
These were all made pre-virus, but these abandoned businesses have a special, eerie poignancy now.
Artist statement:
"I don’t really have a death wish, it just seems that way. For the last eight years my photographs have highlighted a fictional urban landscape ‘after’. An aquarium after a flood, a church after a fire, a beauty parlor after…who knows what. Mankind is gone and what remains are vacant fragments of buildings, a few slowly being reclaimed by nature. These photos began their lives as complex dioramas sculpted out of foam board, paint, plaster and wood. Built in great detail from scratch, the dioramas reflect their previous inhabitants’ daily lives.
As an artist, I have always taken inspiration from my surroundings. I grew up in the 1970’s in rural western Kansas. Every season brought with it a new disaster or weather phenomenon. As a child I personally experienced tornados, floods, blizzards and drought. I was never scared or upset by them because I had my parents to worry about the implications. Rather, these events brought excitement to a life that by most people’s standards was quite dull. I also grew up on steady diet of 1970’s television and cinema. Saturday night meant the Carroll Burnett Show, popcorn and a can of coke. My small Kansas town of Norton, population 3500, had a single movie house that ran Disney features on Saturday afternoon, and in the evenings it showed the genre that was popular at the time, dystopian cinema. It was in this small movie house reeking of popcorn and sticky floors that I was mesmerized by movies such as Planet of the Apes, Towering Inferno, Earthquake, and Airport‘76. As a six year old viewing these kinds of movies, I believe it had a profound effect on the art I create today. My work to date can be described as disaster mixed with subtle humor.
I began “The City” series after moving to New York in 1999. Surrounded by great architecture, skyscrapers, and bridges, the urban landscape couldn’t help but find its way into my work. Still a fan of dystopian entertainment, think Blade Runner, Alien, The Hunger Games, etc, my current series is a mashup of my new urban life and a look towards an apocalyptic future. “The City” imagines what New York City and Brooklyn would look like if suddenly mankind had disappeared."
Top to bottom: Bar; Beauty Shop; Casino; Chinese Take-Out; Circulation Desk; Control Room; Laundromat (day); Laundromat (night); Natural History; Subway; Anatomy Classroom
http://www.lorinix.net/
http://www.nixgerberstudio.com/
Friday, September 20, 2019
Algae Brings Hope!
Hypergiant Industries bills themselves as the AI industrial complex for leading global enterprises and governments, helping major institutions innovate with breakthrough machine intelligence-driven technology. In fact, their motto is "Tomorrowing today."
And they seem to be earning their reputation with this amazing invention, an algae-based bioreactor that can suck as much carbon dioxide from the air as an acre of forest. The working prototype 3’x3’x7′ structure is intended for use in urban environments where it can fit within office buildings, connecting with an HVAC system to reduce CO2 levels inside and release cleaner air. Algae thrive on carbon dioxide emissions making it one of nature’s most efficient tools for carbon capture and sequestration. It could play a critical role in the sustainability of human life in our ecosystem.
It's inspiring to see such solutions being not only proposed but created and implemented. This along with the much-talked of process of driving CO2 into the ground makes me think that the human race might have a chance after all.
https://www.hypergiant.com/
And they seem to be earning their reputation with this amazing invention, an algae-based bioreactor that can suck as much carbon dioxide from the air as an acre of forest. The working prototype 3’x3’x7′ structure is intended for use in urban environments where it can fit within office buildings, connecting with an HVAC system to reduce CO2 levels inside and release cleaner air. Algae thrive on carbon dioxide emissions making it one of nature’s most efficient tools for carbon capture and sequestration. It could play a critical role in the sustainability of human life in our ecosystem.
It's inspiring to see such solutions being not only proposed but created and implemented. This along with the much-talked of process of driving CO2 into the ground makes me think that the human race might have a chance after all.
https://www.hypergiant.com/
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
