Meta Post: New Forms

In this course we’ve thought a lot about how our words and our writing can channel natural ideas and environmental personalities. How can we write like a mountain? What does an ocean’s conversation sound like? We’ve debated over how to personify natural subjects or distance ourselves from them for objectivity and true representation, but I think this week adds another layer to the debate: what forms can we utilize to tell nature’s story? How do we choose these forms in conjunction with nature? And how do different forms tell different stories? This week we branch out of the written word and into performance art and art installation. We can apply the questions we’ve asked about writing to art and performance as well. These techniques highlight the importance of process as well as final product (for example, working through a tree’s sense of time instead of a human one can lead to a new beautiful art form of a hidden library). Nature must be essential in all of it.

            Many of us have contemplated this new strand of exploration. Theunconventionalmagellanic writes, that these libraries are “speaking literally and metaphorically through art,” they ask “what story am I telling? Stories in front of us are everywhere.” These new methods of storytelling and sharing can be sobering, as noted by AlphaxWolf18. Tillhumanvoiceswakeus22 also feels out these new forms even as the forms redefine written words, remarking that “the term library is challenged and expanded based on our idea of what a story looks like. The story the trees are telling is about potential, overwhelmed with hope.” These installations expand our sense of story and in doing so they expand our sense of the world.

            And where does nature fit in to all of this? WishingWhistle wonders if perhaps “the trees and glaciers are[n’t] saying anything for themselves…the artists are forcing statements on them by putting them into these types of situations.” If something is used as a building-block for a story, is it heightened in the process or is it concealed by the artist’s intent? Or is there a continuous relationship, hopefully a cooperative and collaborative one, between the two? How can we respect the world around us even as we create new stories and repurpose the world for our individual expression? These questions don’t have definite answers, but I feel like we worked towards them this week through our responses to the water and tree libraries.

Meta Post

This week's discussion was certainly an interesting one, with big questions and some cool insights into their possible answers. One thing in particular that seemed to stand out was frizzy-headed's idea that humans and nature are in fact inseparable, and in a similar vein to feminism's "personal is political" slogan, "nature is human." This stemmed from a question about the extent that the weather affects or even structures our lives, and the answer to this seemed to be a "yes" but that humans also tend to cut ties between the weather and themselves. This line of thinking also ties into our questions pertaining to our future in regards to the condition of the natural world-- along with a shout out to Margaret Atwood for being blunt about nature not caring if humans are around or not.

In regards to the library projects we discussed this week, we seem to have some ideas about the meaning and impact of the libraries themselves. According to at least one person, the trees and columns of water do not possess meaning themselves, but rather the statements being made are a result of the artists applying their own ideas to them-- an intriguing concept. But we also seem to appreciate these library projects for the future potential they represent, as well as a more broad concept of a library that includes more types of stories rather than just books.

Meta Post

I feel this weeks blogging was one of the most interesting topics of discussion we've had this far. Many creative thoughts and ideas laid framework for thinking about the presence of nature and gave perspective on the relationships between humans and nature. I noticed that each comment in the blog discussion dealt with the insights of what can be gained from viewing nature and what story would it tell if we listened to the glaciers or trees. I think one concept that the group was able to collectively conclude that frizzy-headed eloquently stated, is that "nature is human". This means that there is not a competition between humans and nature or working to separate ourselves from the other, but rather is synonymous with each other by being apart of one another.

A good example is the library of things and the concept of what story can be told from the melted glaciers or trees and I think that many believe it is also the story of us. Our cause for melting the glacier or changing the climate directly can be traced by our actions and how we are living. Another example is the weather being apart of us as far as the climate and region we live in and how the weather can heavily affect our mood suggests we are one with that aspect of nature. Going forward, collectively we would like to see how the chemistry and fabric of our relationship with nature can be woven into our literature and our perception of ourselves among nature. We are curious to see how the dynamic and evolution of literature will change with the inclusion of ourselves as being one with nature.

Meta Post

This week's blog was full of many interesting thoughts on the relationships between humans and nature. Theunconventionalmagellanic and AlphaxWolf18 talked about their thoughts on these future libraries. Theunconventionalmagellanic brought up and interesting point, "A library is a collection of stories, and that isn't necessarily words - they can be melted glaciers and trees." tilhumanvoiceswakeus22 responded and agreed with Theunconventionalmagellanic that the future library project is a new way to challenge how we, humans, share and discuss stories.
WhishingWhistle’s comment looks at the idea of future libraries more critically. They discuss their belief that trees and glaciers aren’t saying anything and that artists are “forcing”statements upon them. Their thought process concludes by them coming to the conclusion that future libraries are humans and nature working in harmony to tell a story. I really liked the conclusion they came to and enjoyed reading their thought process to get to that point. In AlphaxWolf18’s launch post they brought up a darker viewpoint of future libraries, specifically in relation to the water library. They compare the glacier water library to a library representing the dying world. I thought this was a really interesting way to look at things. MissQuackin went a different route with their launch post and talked about how weather influences our lives. I thought it was intensely thought provoking when they questioned how weather is part of our human culture and what power weather has in relation to our lives. The weather isn’t something that we always deeply think about, but is something that plays a large role in our lives. I felt like I learned a lot this week not only from the articles but the blog discussion. So much to take in!

A piece of the introduction in Weather Reports You, said "Weather is the key paradox of our time." And it has left me to consider and ask myself, how does the weather shape our lives? Weather is a cause of many deaths, from accidents or natural disasters. And the sun is even a danger to our skin and our health. Weather can be anything and run at any time.  “The weather’s like that. If you don’t fight it, you become one with it and vanish.” And that leaves me to wonder, how do we interact to the weather? Does it really affect how we structure our lives? Some people do seem to react in certain ways to the weather, like simply being depressed by the rain.

I ask you, do you think that weather, a force of live that can never be taken away, is a structure and building block to our lives? Does the weather patterns in certain areas of our country became a piece of culture? A piece of us? Does weather have that power? 

Launch Post

It is no secret that despite us moving in a world that lives, we continue to damage it in some way. Over the past several years there has been numerous discussions on how we are damaging our planet, and others about ways we can help our planet and its life prosper. Of course, humanity is destructive. Most often, we are aware of the consequences of the choices we make. However, as time passes, it seems we are not as conscientious of the destruction we are causing our planet— because we are not immersing ourselves in eco-friendly everyday engagements. I think this is in part because of the technological advances we've made over the years. Instead of viewing the world around us with our own eyes, we see through computer screens and elaborate plasma and LED screens on monitors and televisions. We run towards whatever society has placed in front of us— we want anything and everything that is new. It's almost as if we're born to follow these conventions. However, there is the capability of change and of voice, which is where Roni Horn and Katie Pearson come in; they are speaking out both literally and metaphorically in artistic means. Katie Pearson is the mastermind behind the future library, where select authors will write their pieces of work to be printed on the very trees that are grown at the library's location. This project is both eco-friendly and innovative, and hopefully it will continue to be one as years pass by. Pearson seems to be conscientious about the changes we are making to our environments, and what better way to speak out about it than plant a future library that speaks out about those changes? Roni Horn on the other hand has created a library of glacial waters that have melted. There is the idea that a library always has to contain books, but this concept of Horn's is intriguing. Each of those columns full of water tell a story in their own right. What caused me to melt? What caused my state of being to change? What story am I telling? If we think about it, a library isn't just books. A library is a collection of stories, and that isn't necessarily words— they can be melted glaciers and trees. There are stories in front of us everywhere we are if we're willing to look for them. Thus, I leave you with these questions to ponder: what do you think the trees and the columns of water are saying? Why do you think they are saying what they are? What do you think the intentions of Horn and Pearson were in creating these libraries?

Launch Post

"Nature doesn't care if there are humans or not. I'm sorry to break this to you." Margaret Atwood.

     I just wanna say That I love Margaret Atwood. I love how she talks and thinks. Another quote from her in the interview of the forest she said, "Kill the ocean, then you die. Very simple." I love how blunt she is and doesn't care to step on some toes. I'm very happy that she is the first writer for the forest project. There are many times people say I shouldn't be so bleak and don't say such sad things. For example, if our kelp forest dies, we die. Saying I shouldn't say such dark things. I feel like when you sugarcoat things people don't take it as serious. She could have said something like "we need to take better care of our oceans" Which everyone says and everyone nods their head in agreement, then go back to their everyday life. While she says something that is like a baseball and throws it at your face, where you have to think about it. She is someone I aim to be. I hope I can become a great writer, where one day I can get an invite to write a book for this project. If we are still alive.
   While we have the forest project that is more optimistic about our future, the water library is soberer. While the water is pretty with the view it has a darker undertone there. It's the water of melting glaciers, which in a way can symbolize the dying world. Or at least showing what humans have done to it because I believe earth may still live and adapt who know what the changes will do to the life as we know it. Which sounds clique but the world has been going for billions of years and it started off as just water and cells. Maybe, the world would become all ocean again. I don't know. Like Margaret said, The world doesn't care whether there are humans or not.
   As for my questions, which one is your favorite and why? Do you have a more optimistic or pessimistic look in the future of human/earth's life? Which one do you think will have a stronger impact on human's minds to want to help nature? The forest project where they are planting trees to grow books or the water library that shows the causes of human nature now? Also, the Book Margaret Atwood, is writing is Scribbler Moon, what do you think it will be about? You can also pick other authors from the project, I just choose Margaret because she was my favorite.