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Three Van Goghs in a Watch

Posted in Uncategorized, tagged , , , , , on July 18, 2023| 2 Comments »

Photo: David A. Lindon/BBC.
These micro paintings cannot be seen with the naked eye.

We were speaking of miniatures. Today’s story is about an artist who goes beyond miniature to microscopic: art that can’t be seen with the naked eye, art that has to be painted at night to avoid the slightest jostling from traffic.

Cathy Free wrote about the artist at the Washington Post. “Late at night while most everyone in the coastal English town of Bournemouth is sleeping, David A. Lindon sits in front of a microscope making the tiniest of artworks. His creations are so minuscule and precise, he steadies his hands by only moving them between his own heartbeats.

“One twitch — or worse, something as disastrous as a sneeze — and his latest painting or sculpture could disappear into the fibers of his carpet or be lost forever in the jumble of tools on his desk. … A few years ago, at least one piece of artwork became lodged inside Lindon’s nose, never to be seen again.

“ ‘I inhaled it by accident, and poof. It was gone,’ he said. ‘To do what I do, you practically have to work yourself into a trance.’ …

“He started out putting each of his tiny masterpieces inside the eye of a needle or on top of a pin. His latest work is rotating as a wearable miniature art gallery inside a watch.

“To celebrate the 50th anniversary of the Van Gogh Museum in the Netherlands last month, Lindon collaborated with Edward Hammond, the founder of Hammond Galleries in the United Kingdom, to re-create three of Vincent van Gogh’s most famous paintings — ‘Starry Night,‘ ‘Sunflowers‘ and ‘Self-Portrait‘ in micro form. … The project took him six months.

“The watch with the microscopic Van Goghs is now on view at Hammond Galleries, valued at $190,000. …

“Lindon has three other pieces on display in New York this summer at an exhibition called ‘Small Is Beautiful,’ and he said he’s next hoping to showcase the world’s smallest zoo. …

“ ‘What I do doesn’t take up much space, but it’s very, very hard to do,’ he said. ‘It takes hundreds of hours.’ …

“Lindon, a former engineer who once worked in the aircraft industry, said he developed a fascination [with] ultra small-scale art after watching a TV special in the U.K. about artists who enjoyed creating diminutive works.

“In 2019, he said he decided to create a few of his own pieces and spent months working on his painstaking technique. His first piece was a wee Dalmatian that he made for his daughter, Abigail. It measured about a half of a millimeter long, and was crafted from materials that included porcelain, nylon, carbon fiber and precious metals.

“ ‘She suggested that I put it online, so I posted it on Facebook and Instagram,’ he said. ‘When people went nuts over it, I knew I must be on to something.’

“Lindon experimented with materials such as carpet fibers and crushed micro pigments, and he developed his own small tools, including a blade made from a hypodermic needle with a diamond fragment on the tip, and brushes made with fibers from silkworms.

“ ‘People ask me, “Do you paint with the leg of a fly?” But I actually use micro hooks and shovels that I’m constantly remaking,’ he said. …

“His work is reminiscent of the famed micro artist Willard Wigan, who for decades has painted with materials such as human eyelashes, and has won two Guinness World Records for the tiniest art made by a human hand. Other micro artists — including Hasan Kale, who paints on a grain of rice, as well as almond slivers, and Salavat Fidai, who makes sculptures on the tip of a pencil — have gained notoriety for their talents in the world of tiny art.

“Lindon said he usually works late at night so vibrations from traffic won’t disturb his concentration or cause his art to tremble under the microscope. ‘One mistake and it’s gone,’ he said. …

“His most frustrating loss was a mini reproduction of Pablo Picasso’s ‘Weeping Woman,‘ Lindon said.

“ ‘She has lots of color and is very angular with lots of straight lines,’ he said. ‘Basically, she’s a jigsaw. Earlier this year, I got three-quarters of the way through this complicated piece when my fingers suddenly twitched and I ripped the painting apart.

“ ‘I could have cried, but I carried on,’ Lindon added. …

“He said that mishaps happen less frequently now that he has taught himself to control his heartbeat by slowing down his breathing and relaxing.”

People sure come up with the most amazing hobbies! More at the Post, here.

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Homeless Hotline Angel

Posted in Uncategorized, tagged , , , , , on July 17, 2023| 8 Comments »

Photo: Ned Gerard/Hearst Connecticut Media.
A homeless camp set up in Connecticut.

We really do have housing crisis in this country, and it’s going to be expensive to fix it. Government can’t do it alone, says my friend Jeanne, who has been researching the subject. It will require partnerships with builders and communities that imagine the current situation can’t hurt them.

In the meantime, don’t blame the people who fall into homelessness. It’s harder than ever to work your way out.

Joana Slater writes at the Washington Post about a woman in Connecticut who has been there and now assists others. “Shanta Wiley sits down in a swivel chair, slips on a black headset and takes a deep breath. Three minutes to go. It’s 7:57 a.m. on a Friday, and the Connecticut homelessness hotline that Wiley staffs is about to open.

“With each shift, Wiley hears from people sleeping in cars and parks, people evicted by landlords or turned out by relatives. Frightened, angry, vulnerable people seeking shelter at a time of rising rents in one of the most expensive states in the country. Calls have surged in recent years, and Wiley’s job is to funnel a tide of need toward limited help.

“On this morning, Wiley’s mind is still on one of the prior day’s callers: a young woman living in her car with her 2-year-old child. For several minutes, Wiley just listened to her cry. Then they made a list of next steps to find a spot at a shelter.

“She’s still thinking about the woman when a beep sounds on the line.

“ ‘211 Housing Crisis,’ Wiley answers, her voice light and even. ‘Shanta speaking, how can I help you?’

“It’s a mother of two girls, ages 5 and 6. She’s staying temporarily in a hotel in the southern part of the state. Checkout is in three hours and she doesn’t know where to go. Before the hotel, she and her kids were staying in a car, ‘taking washes at McDonald’s and stuff,’ the woman says. ‘There’s nobody out here to lean on at all.’

“ ‘Completely understand,’ says Wiley. ‘Glad to assist you.’

“Behind the courtesy is a story the caller will never hear. Wiley understands exactly how the woman is feeling. She knows, because she was once the person calling for help.

“Wiley, 41, started working at the 211 Housing Crisis Line, which is run by United Way of Connecticut, in January. For nearly a decade, it has served as the central access point for all shelters in the state.

“The work is a window into the acute shortage of affordable housing nationwide and the withdrawal of pandemic-era programs aimed at protecting Americans from eviction and hunger. …

“So much of what [Wiley] hears on the calls echoes her own experience. There was the man who, when Wiley asked when he last ate, said he was fine with a cup of coffee. Wiley remembered that well. When she had no money for groceries at the end of the month, she’d let her kids eat while she just drank coffee. …

“Wiley went to a high school with a lively debate program, which she loved. In her senior year, she became pregnant and had a baby boy. She still graduated. After a year, she dropped out of college and later broke up with her fiance. It was the start of a long period of instability. She had another son and was staying with her parents when they were evicted from their apartment in 2005. Wiley and her two boys, the youngest an infant, ended up in a shelter in south Hartford.

“Even then, she was always working, always pushing ahead with her studies. At the shelter, Wiley’s mom watched the kids while Wiley worked the overnight shift processing checks for Bank of America. For four years, Wiley worked at Target. She completed her associate’s degree and later her bachelor’s in business administration.

“But steady housing remained elusive. Many landlords seemed wary of renting to a single mother. There were spells staying with her mother, with a cousin, with a boyfriend. She and her boys slept on couches and living room floors.

“In 2012, she was living at her mother’s place when it was condemned, forcing the whole family, yet again, to look for somewhere else to live. A friend told Wiley about an apartment available in her building.

“It was the worst one yet: Drug dealers hung out inside the front entrance and patrolled the halls. The building was regularly raided by police. Wiley remembers sitting at the kitchen table and crying as she tried to finish a college paper on entrepreneurship while people used drugs outside in the hallway.

“After a month, she saw a listing for a place nearby and grabbed it. She had started a new job with the Hispanic Health Council doing outreach with pregnant women. That meant she needed a car to do home visits, so she purchased a used Saturn Ion.

“Soon she faced a choice familiar to many on the hotline: Either she lost the car critical to her job, or she fell behind on rent. She chose the latter. If she had to, she reasoned, she would park her car in her mom’s driveway and her kids would sleep inside while Wiley stayed in the vehicle.

“Midmorning, Wiley takes the first of two 15-minute breaks. … She just sighs.

“ ‘It’s heavy,’ she says. … Especially in situations where ‘there’s no answer — or not much of an answer.’

“Sometimes, when Wiley puts callers on hold to look up information or arrange appointments, she uses it as a chance to step away from the intensity of the need. …

“At 11:56, Wiley takes a call from a mother of two children, ages 3 and 13. They’ve recently arrived in Connecticut from Georgia and are staying with a friend, but it’s a volatile situation. The woman is reluctant to say more. Wiley explains that she will arrange an intake interview for a shelter, but a spot is not guaranteed.

“ ‘Are you okay?’ she asks. ‘Not really,’ the woman replies, and begins to cry. Wiley urges her to get her teenager enrolled in school and directs her to the state’s child-care hotline so she can apply for assistance for her toddler.

“ ‘She has to get that child in school as soon as possible,’ Wiley says. That’s the very first thing Wiley would do when she and her boys were in a new area. It gave them a sense of normalcy, she says, plus ‘I could think while they’re in school.’ …

“Wiley’s mind is on the future. She is teaching herself a programming language so she can look for work as a data analyst to increase her pay. ‘I want to break those generational curses,’ she says.

“Her older son is studying to become a machinist and her younger son is preparing to attend the Connecticut School of Broadcasting. … A few weeks ago, her older son, Justus, gave her a measure of closure. He told her everything that had happened to them wasn’t all her fault. ‘He’s like, “You were always working and going to school. You really was trying,” ‘ Wiley recalls.

“Looking back, Wiley says there were times she made poor decisions. But mostly, it’s a question of the system, she says. What she hears on her calls hasn’t changed much since she was one of the callers.

“ ‘You have to literally be at the total bottom before they help you,’ she says. ‘They’re not going to help you before you get to that point.’ ”

Do you notice how many of those experiencing homelessness are women with young children? In addition to the lack of housing, something else is definitely not right.

More at the Post, here. For deeper insight, read Matthew Desmond’s Evicted, here, or Tracy Kidder’s Rough Sleepers, here.

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Dollhouse Miniatures

Posted in Uncategorized, tagged , , , , on July 16, 2023| 8 Comments »

Photo: Seattle Miniature Show.

One of the many small challenges of our downsizing process has been what to do with Suzanne’s elaborate dollhouse, one that I ordered (even before she was born) from a talented high school student written up in a local paper.

It’s not that there aren’t plenty of people who would want a dollhouse that has wallpaper and electric lights, but maybe Suzanne still wants it. She’s not sure. The charm of miniatures is long-lasting.

Emma Orlow wrote about this charm recently at the New York Times. “Moments before 10 a.m., a security guard thanked the crowd for being cooperative.

“When the clock struck the hour, it became clear why: The doors of the Marriott Chicago O’Hare conference center opened, and hundreds of attendees, a majority of whom were over the age of 60, bee-lined as fast as they could to the booths.

“Many had studied the color-coded map ahead of time listing each booth’s location and came prepared with a shopping plan — a scene that could easily be mistaken for a Black Friday sale. Instead, it was the Chicago International Miniatures Show.

“Despite the gathering touting itself as ‘the World’s No. 1 Dollhouse Miniatures Show,’ there aren’t many actual dollhouses. Attendees instead sift through thousands of tiny objects that fill these tiny homes: miniature sponges, chocolate fondue fountains, rocking chairs, barbecue sets, Tupperware containers or fly swatters.

“The Tom Bishop show, as many attendees call it, is considered by its founder, Mr. Bishop, to be the largest dollhouse miniatures event in the world. Numbers appear to support that claim. This year, over 250 vendors traveled from 21 countries and 35 states. …

“Mr. Bishop estimates he has done over 500 miniature shows around the world, though in recent years he has downsized to only Chicago, which has been a continuous stop for nearly 40 years. Even the hotel itself is personal for Mr. Bishop: It’s where he and his wife, Leni, 77, spent the first night of their honeymoon.

“In 1977, the duo relocated from Chicago to Margate, Fla., where they opened their dollhouse store, Miniland, before closing it in 1984 to focus their attention on traveling conventions. Mr. Bishop, who also worked for American Airlines for 17 years, was inspired to create his own show after attending others that ‘weren’t run very well,’ he said. …

“Teri, 77, of Teri’s Mini Workshop, who declined to give her last name, said she wouldn’t have been able to showcase her miniature nacho cheese machines, plates of gefilte fish or medical supplies (about $10) had a booth not dropped out last minute. She hoped her soft power would be her low pricing, in contrast to some other tables, where pieces can go for hundreds of dollars a pop.

“If a collector wants something one of a kind, it might sell out on the first day, said Becky Evert, 68, a customer who had traveled from Denver with friends for the event. ‘Did I come with a budget? Yes,’ she said. ‘Did I stay to it? No.’ Of her seven years in attendance, it was the largest crowd she had ever seen.

“Beth Pothen, 42, who runs Mountain Creek Miniatures and is a full-time postal worker, is a second-generation miniaturist, making items like goth furniture and Christmas cookie trays (she got her start at a Girl Scouts craft fair). She drove from Spokane, Wash., for the convention and hoped to recoup the cost of travel and labor, and then some, she said. Individual tables cost $325, and some opt to have two at their booth, according to Mr. Bishop.

“While there’s value in breadth like that of Ms. Pothen’s, others distinguish themselves with a more niche focus. Kristin Castenschiold, 41, of Heartfelt Canines in Green Village, N.J., made a name for herself selling miniature dogs on Etsy — ‘I get some of the hair from a friend who is a pet groomer,’ she said — and has since expanded to all kinds of furry friends, miniature light-up aquariums and trompe l’oeil cat litter boxes.

“Margie Criner, 53, of Chicago’s Itty Bitty Mini Mart, makes miniatures as part of her full-time fine art practice (she’s currently on display at the traveling show ‘Small is Beautiful‘), but wanted a way to make her work more accessible. Her tiny items, which include translucent Jell-O and teensy records from the rock band Television, are inspired by items she had growing up.

“Ms. Criner is a part of a new generation of miniature makers, following in the footsteps of artists like Laurie Simmons, bringing the genre out from the home, into the gallery — with designs more modern and cheeky than the antiquarian selections that once came to define the miniature world.

“While it can be hard to stand out, everyone described the world of miniature selling and buying as quite collaborative and joyful.”

More at the Times, here.

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Man Living Under Water

Posted in Uncategorized, tagged , , , , , on July 15, 2023| 7 Comments »

Photo: University of South Florida.
Joseph Dituri retired from the Navy as a commander after 28 years and went back to school. He is now a hyperbaric medicine researcher and associate professor at the University of South Florida.

How much do you love the ocean? Enough to live in it for more than 75 days without coming up? In May, Kyle Melnick at the Washington Post wrote about a guy who did that.

“Joseph Dituri, a hyperbaric medicine researcher and associate professor at the University of South Florida, has been living in an underwater pod in Key Largo, Fla., since March 1. He’s exploring whether living underwater is possible through daily tests on his brain, heart, lungs and blood.

“On [his] 73rd day at Jules’ Undersea Lodge — Dituri believes he broke the world record for the longest stint living underwater. But Dituri, 55, is still determined to live submerged for 100 days to complete his experiment.

“ ‘It’s not about the world record,’ Dituri told the Washington Post. ‘It’s about living underwater and in an isolated, confined, extreme environment. I have 100 days as the mark, but it’s only because I couldn’t afford to spend 200 days.’

“Dituri has long been fascinated with water. He grew up near the Atlantic Ocean in Long Island and served in the U.S. Navy for nearly 28 years before retiring as a commander in December 2012.

“Around that time, Dituri was scuba diving near Orange County, Calif., when he said he saw an 11-inch sea lice. He had believed all sea lice were only a few millimeters long. He wondered what other species he could discover in the sea.

“Dituri knew living underwater was possible. In 2014, two Tennessee professors stayed in Jules’ Undersea Lodge, an underwater hotel in Key Largo, for 73 days. Since watching his military colleagues suffer concussions during the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, Dituri has studied treatments for traumatic brain injuries. He wondered whether living underwater in a pressurized environment could aid brain injuries. …

“Dituri needed more degrees to become a researcher, so he earned a PhD in biomedical engineering from the University of South Florida in December 2017. In 2019, Dituri and four friends stayed at Jules’ Undersea Lodge for five days to test underwater life. But Dituri wanted to be submerged longer, and by himself, to see how his brain and body would respond. …

“Before Dituri went underwater, doctors recorded his vitals, including blood pressure, cholesterol, calcium levels, muscle inflammation and stem-cell health. He also underwent anxiety and depression exams with psychologists.

“Dituri booked a 100-square-foot pod — similar to a 10-by-10-foot room — that rests 22 feet underwater. The lodge gets electricity, oxygen and water from a cord connected to land. Dituri also attached an ethernet cable to a router on land for internet access. The pod has a small kitchen, toilet, shower and bedroom.

“Every three days, Dituri said his research colleagues swim to his pod to deliver food, including eggs and salmon, in a pressurized container. But Dituri can only cook in a microwave because of the increased pressure in the sea. He also makes Café Bustelo coffee every morning. Dituri still teaches his hyperbaric medicine and biomedical engineering classes virtually three days per week for the University of South Florida.

“He exercises with resistance bands and takes vitamin D supplements. But his main research has come from tests on his body. He frequently takes urine samples and has undergone electrograms, which record brain and heart activity. …

“Dituri said that his cholesterol and stress have dropped, that he spends more of his rest in REM or deep sleep, and that he has produced stem cells at a faster rate. …

“Still, Dituri has missed human touch. He only sees his girlfriend and three daughters virtually. … On Saturday, Dituri’s 80-year-old mother, Mary, will take a scuba-diving course so she can visit her son.”

More at the Post, here.

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Rainforest Guardians

Posted in Uncategorized, tagged , , , , , on July 14, 2023| 9 Comments »

Photo: Annas Radin Syarif / AMAN at Medium.
A Kajang elder in Indonesia demonstrates the wearing of a passapu headwrap and the passing of knowledge to the next generation.

While most of the world was going full-steam on nature-destroying “progress,” many indigenous groups were quietly protecting whatever was left.

Peter Yeung at the Washington Post writes about the Kajang people in Indonesia.

“By midmorning, beams of tropical sun cut through the rainforest canopy, illuminating a bamboo hut in a rare clearing of trees. Inside, a wrinkled old man, sitting cross-legged with his eyes shut, whispers blessings to the Earth.

“After the spiritual leader, the Ammatoa, goes silent, groups of men wearing dark indigo sarongs jump to their feet and head into the forest carrying an offering of rattan baskets full of rice, bananas and lighted candles.

“ ‘The Earth is angry with us,’ said Budi, a barefoot boy crouching on the hut’s edge. ‘That is why the weather is getting worse. There are more rains and floods. It is getting hotter. It is because we have sinned.’

“This ritual is known as the Andingingi, held once a year by the Kajang, a tribe from the Indonesian island of Sulawesi. Like many parts of the world, their land has been hit by more extreme weather because of climate change. But as satellite imagery shows, the Kajang’s dense primary forest is free from roads and development, soaking up violent rains that devastate other parts of the island.

“As global deforestation continues at alarming rates, the empowerment of Indigenous peoples such as the Kajang is emerging as a key way to protect the world’s rainforests. A spate of recent research suggests that when armed with land rights, these communities, whose members manage half the world’s land and 80 percent of its biodiversity, are remarkably effective custodians. …

“The Kajang [community] lives according to the Pasang Ri Kajang, an ancestral law passed down orally through legends and tales. It tells of how the first human fell from the sky into their forest, making it the most sacred place on Earth.

“In practice, that means the forest is at the center of life. The Kajang rely on subsistence agriculture, with no industry or commerce to speak of. Cutting trees, hunting animals and even pulling up grass is prohibited on most of the land. Modern technology, such as cars and mobile phones, is not allowed within the traditional territory.

“ ‘The tree is just like a human body,’ said Mail, a 28-year-old Kajang. … ‘If the forest is destroyed, there will be nothing for the bees, nothing for the flowers and nothing for life.’

“So far, Indigenous tribes have received little legal, financial or institutional backing, advocates say. A 2021 report by the nonprofit Rainforest Foundation Norway found that over the past decade, Indigenous peoples received less than 1 percent of donor funding for fighting deforestation.

“Yet policy is now beginning to shift in recognition of the role they can play in protecting the land. …

“At the U.N. Climate Change Conference in 2021, also known as COP26, world leaders pledged $1.7 billion of funding for these communities, calling them ‘guardians of forests.’ …

“In December 2016, the Indonesian government officially recognized more than 50 square miles of rainforest as belonging to nine of the country’s tribes — including the Kajang — following a landmark ruling by the nation’s highest court. … In a case brought by the Alliance of Indigenous Peoples of the Archipelago (AMAN), an Indonesian nonprofit, the Constitutional Court ruled in 2013 that the state should transfer ownership of what are called customary forests to the Indigenous peoples who had historically governed them according to custom. …

“The rate of primary forest loss in Indonesia has declined every year since 2016, according to the most recent data available, and is now at its lowest level since at least 2002.

“The recognition of customary forests, along with government efforts to protect peatlands and mangroves and to tighten regulations on logging, oil palm and mining permits, has helped drive that reduction. …

“The Kajang are a showcase of Indonesia’s experiment. For years, local forest rangers have helped protect a wealth of native wildlife, including deer, monkeys, wild boars and tropical birds, as well as four rivers, whose watersheds supply several villages outside Kajang land. ..

“The philosophy of Kamase Mase, living simply and taking no more than needed to subsist, underpins their lifestyle here. …

“ ‘We must keep the tradition,’ said Jaja Tika, a weaver. … ‘As long as we live, the forest will exist.’ ”

More at the Post, here.

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Birdsong and Mental Health

Posted in Uncategorized, tagged , , , , , on July 13, 2023| 6 Comments »

Photo: Mia McPherson/ On the Wing Photography.
Western Meadowlark singing.

Doctors are starting to recommend meditation to lower blood pressure in older people. When meditation was first suggested to me, I scoffed in my usual know-it-all way (what my husband used to call my “stranglehold on the truth”), but as I researched different kinds of meditation on the web, I gradually became a believer.

One of the ways meditation experts get you to focus on the here and now is to have you pay attention to each of your five senses in sequence, as in one five-minute meditation from the Washington Post. Others add that listening specifically to birdcalls can be therapeutic.

At the Post, Richard Sima says, “Looking to improve your mental health? Pay attention to birds. Two studies published last year in Scientific Reports said that seeing or hearing birds could be good for our mental well-being. …

“Research has consistently shown that more contact and interaction with nature are associated with better body and brain health.

“Birds appear to be a specific source of these healing benefits. They are almost everywhere and provide a way to connect us to nature. And even if they are hidden in trees or in the underbrush, we can still revel in their songs.

” ‘The special thing about birdsongs is that even if people live in very urban environments and do not have a lot of contact with nature, they link the songs of birds to vital and intact natural environments,’ said Emil Stobbe, an environmental neuroscience graduate student at the Max Planck Institute for Human Development and author of one of the studies.

“Recent research also suggests that listening to recordings of their songs, even through headphones, can alleviate negative emotions. …

“In one study, researchers asked about 1,300 participants to collect information about their environment and well-being three times a day using a smartphone app called Urban Mind.

“The participants were not explicitly told that the researchers were looking at birds — the app was also collecting data about other vitals such as sleep quality, subjective assessment of air quality, and location details. But the 26,856 assessments offered a rich data set of what is associated with mental well-being in real time in the real world.

“By analyzing the data, the researchers found a significant positive association between seeing or hearing birds and improved mental well-being, even when accounting for other possible explanations such as education, occupation, or the presence of greenery and water, which have themselves been associated with positive mental health.

“The benefits persisted well beyond the bird encounter. If a participant reported seeing or hearing birds at one point, their mental well-being was higher, on average, hours later even if they did not encounter birds at the next check-in.

“Ryan Hammoud, a PhD candidate at the Institute of Psychiatry, Psychology & Neuroscience at King’s College London and an author of the study, called it a ‘time-lasting link.’

“Intriguingly, the birds benefit both healthy participants and those who have been diagnosed with depression. …

“A second study found that listening to short — just six-minute — audio clips of birdsong could reduce feelings of anxiety, depression and paranoia in healthy participants.

“ ‘Listening to birdsong through headphones was able to hit the same pathways that might be beneficial toward mental well-being,’ said Hammoud, who was not involved in the second study. …

“Researchers asked 295 online participants to self-assess their emotional states and to take a cognitive memory test. Then they randomly assigned the participants to listen to birdsongs or traffic noise, of more or less diversity. The researchers then had the subjects remeasure their emotional and cognitive states.

“Participants who listened to more diverse birdsongs (featuring the acoustic acrobatics of eight species) reported a decrease in depressive symptoms in addition to significant decreases in feelings of anxiety and paranoia. And those who listened to less diverse birdsongs (two bird species) also reported a significant decrease in feelings of anxiety and paranoia. …

“By contrast, listening to more or less diverse traffic noise worsened symptoms of depressive states.

“The research shows the ‘healing aspects of nature, or also the not-so-positive effects of urban surroundings,’ said Stobbe, an author of the second study. …

“Birds help us feel more connected with nature and its health effects, Stobbe said, and the more connected we are to nature, the more we can benefit from those effects.

“One hypothesis on nature’s salubrious effects, known as the attention restoration theory, posits that being in nature is good for improving concentration and decreasing the mental fatigue associated with living in stressful urban environments. Natural stimuli, such as birdsong, may allow us to engage in ‘soft fascination,’ which holds our attention but also allows it to replenish.

“Nature — and birdsong — also reduce stress. Previous research has found that time spent in green outdoor spaces can lower blood pressure and cortisol levels, Hammoud said.

“It is not yet understood how birdsong affects our brains, but neuroimaging studies have found brain responses of stress reduction to other forms of nature exposure.”

More at the Post, here.

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Missouri Helps Kids Get Outside

Posted in Uncategorized, tagged , , , , , on July 12, 2023| 4 Comments »

Photo: Alfredo Sosa/CSM Staff.
Students from Thorpe Gordon Elementary in Jefferson City, Missouri, at the Runge Conservation Nature Center in April.

It’s not a new idea, but it’s gaining traction: Getting kids outside into nature benefits their learning.

Jackie Valley writes at the Christian Science Monitor, “Down a hiking path and through the woods, giggles and chatter echo from a clearing where elementary students have just finished constructing makeshift shelters.

The challenge blended environment with engineering, hence this visit to the Runge Nature Center from third, fourth, and fifth graders. They’re part of a STEM (science, technology, engineering, and math) club at nearby Thorpe Gordon Elementary in Jefferson City, Missouri. …

“A boy announces he saw a turkey, while another student proclaims ‘teamwork’ her favorite part. The scene portrays what conservation leaders and educators in Missouri are hoping to instill in the state’s youngest residents: an appreciation for the outdoors, a new experience, and some learning along the way.

“ ‘I think it’s so important,” says Melanie Thompson, a librarian from the elementary school who’s leading the STEM group on this day. ‘Kids don’t spend enough time playing outside.’

“In Missouri, efforts to connect children with nature date back to 1939. That’s when the Nature Knights program launched, giving children recognition for conservation practices. Three years earlier, the state’s residents approved an amendment that created an apolitical conservation agency.

“Today, terms such as nature education, outdoor learning, and environmental education refer to instruction that, in many ways, takes students out of traditional classroom settings. Subtle nuances exist, though, depending on the location and programming. The Environmental Protection Agency defines environmental education as a type of learning that allows people to ‘explore environmental issues, engage in problem solving, and take action to improve the environment’ – while also not advocating a particular viewpoint.

“The Missouri Department of Conservation, meanwhile, sees nature education as a way to ‘inspire and educate individuals about nature so they appreciate and ultimately protect our resources and wild places,’ says Brian Flowers, a regional supervisor for the agency’s education branch. …

“ ‘You introduce them to it,’ says Mr. Flowers, referring to conservation, natural resources, and wildlife. ‘You show them why it’s important, and, eventually, that leads to that they care about it. They protect it.’

“A study called The Nature of Americans, conducted in 2015 and 2016, found that more than 80% of children surveyed said time in nature made them feel creative, happy, healthy, and smarter. …

“ ‘Once they’re there, there’s so much that happens – curiosity and creativity and just enjoyment of being outside,’ [Megan Willig, a program coordinator for the National Environmental Education Foundation] says. It can also introduce students to career pathways in the natural resource, conservation, and STEM fields.

“In a grassy field not far from an elderberry patch, a sustainably designed building with large windows and a gently sloping roofline is under construction. It’s the future Boone County Nature School, which occupies land in the Three Creeks Conservation Area and will welcome a rotating cast of 12,000 to 13,000 students each year, says Mr. Flowers.

“The project represents a partnership among the Missouri Department of Conservation, Columbia Public Schools, community organizations, and other school districts in Boone County.

“Columbia Public Schools has hired a teacher to lead instructional efforts at the Boone County Nature School, which fits into the district’s overall mission to pour more resources into place-based learning, says Michelle Baumstark, the chief communications officer. About half of the district’s students qualify for free or reduced-price lunch.

“ ‘These may not be experiences that they would have any other way and when you can create an access to an enriching opportunity, that can change the trajectory of a kid,’ she says.

“The land surrounding the nature school will feature a food forest, pollinator plots, a prairie restoration area, trails, a pavilion, and a council house with three tiers of stadium seating. The karst topography of the conservation area – caves, springs, and hills – is typically only found in southern Missouri near the Ozarks, making it an ideal exploration area for local children, Mr. Flowers says. …

“The Missouri Department of Conservation also operates programs that teach students archery and how to fish, among other things. And, in St. Louis, pavement will be removed and replaced with a green schoolyard at Froebel Literacy Academy. Picture a park-like setting with trees and wildflowers, where students can play and learn through STEM activities.

“The schoolyard project represents a step toward outdoor equity for children who grow up in urban areas that have more concrete and asphalt than lush, green recreation space, says Aaron Jeffries, deputy director of the Missouri Department of Conservation. …

“There’s no national standard for outdoor learning or environmental education, says Ms. Willig of NEEF, which was congressionally chartered in 1990 to complement the work of the EPA. So efforts differ by state and local jurisdiction, though she has seen more interest in making it a formal part of the curriculum.

“If barriers such as time or transportation exist, Ms. Willig recommends that school systems seek community partnerships. For instance, a local nonprofit that supports watershed health, she says, may be keen on helping with programming.

“ ‘The school doesn’t need to reinvent the wheel or start from scratch,’ she says.”

More at the Monitor, here. No firewall, nice pictures.

You can read another of my posts on kids benefiting from nature at school, here.

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Subway Tap Dancer

Posted in Uncategorized, tagged , , , , , on July 11, 2023| 2 Comments »

Photo: William Frederking.
Ja’Bowen Dixon is a performance and visual artist on the Broadway Dance Center faculty. He is one of the founding members of the tap dance company M.A.D.D. Rhythms. 

The New York subway gets a bad rap these days, but did you know about all the art down there? So much great stuff to experience.

Gia Kourlas writes at the New York Times, “You can tell when Ja’Bowen is feeling a song. The grounded power of his feet — whether tapping delicate, whispery notes or hitting rhythmic patterns with ferocity and speed — enlivens an unassuming place: a subway platform.

“But beyond his sleek and supple feet, there is simply his presence. With rigor, elegance and humor, he takes the craft of tap seriously while disarming the crowds that pass through his impromptu theater.

‘You know, more than tap dancing, I’m working to bring some good energy to the city, to the moment where I am.’

“Stumbling on Ja’Bowen is like uncovering a New York City art secret. The lucidity of his body and the music that it produces are steadying forces in an unpredictable space. For months now, this Chicago transplant has been bringing quality tap to the uptown F platform at Delancey Street/Essex Street.

“What he creates with taps and a wooden board — his portable stage — is a reciprocal experience. His dances are containers for waves of energy that pass between him and a crowd. He is a dance artist who makes people smile. Of all ages. In the subway.

“ ‘I get real hyped, and then the audience gets real hyped, and then I lay back a little bit and the audience gets a little quiet,’ he said. ‘It’s like a tennis match going back and forth.’

“His improvs often start slowly. ‘If I’m being honest,’ he said, ‘sometimes people aren’t paying attention or could care less that I’m down there.’

“When a dancer, or really any performer, needs too much love, I tend to look the other way. Ja’Bowen is different. He can seem lost in his own world, dancing for himself until he feels the people around him drawing closer, looking — taking a break from social media to watch a live performance. That’s when he sends his energy out to the crowd.

“Ja’Bowen knows audiences love it when he dances fast, but his preference is to sit back in the pocket, to swing. His internal focus — the way he listens and reacts in this unprotected space of strangers — is a vulnerable display of deep body-mind awareness. And while his musical sensitivity starts at his feet, it doesn’t end there. He dances with his entire self. He likes to play with the levels and emotions in music.

“Ja’Bowen hails from a tap family in Chicago, where his older brother and a friend started the collective company M.A.D.D. Rhythms in part to give Ja’Bowen, then a teenager, something to do. Ja’Bowen joined the percussive-forward group with no formal training. Once he became proficient enough, he started performing in the streets.

“ ‘That’s what really developed my talent more than anything else,’ Ja’Bowen said. ‘You build the skill in rehearsals, but performing is a different thing.’

“If a train is a minute or so away and he’s done with his number, he’ll pick up his mic and invite kids on the platform — they watch him in awe — to learn a step. ‘I’m inviting the kids up, and I’m wishing everybody a good day and that’s intentional,’ he said. ‘You know, more than tap dancing, I’m working to bring some good energy to the city, to the moment where I am.’

“That idea is proven again and again. ‘Hey, tap dancer!’ a woman cried out from the opposite side of the platform one day. She wanted to know where to find him on Instagram.

“Where does his inspiration come from? Ja’Bowen, also an actor and musician, draws a lot from Jimmy Slyde for the way he used tap as a way to connect with an audience, as well as Sammy Davis Jr. and Gregory Hines. ‘It’s not just their footwork but their presentation,’ he said, ‘the way they talk to an audience when they’re onstage, the way they stand still.’

“Tap, he added, is like music. ‘The notes that you’re not playing also have just as much importance as the notes you do play.’ ”

More at the Times, here. Awesome videos.

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Man Saves Stroller, Gets Job

Posted in Uncategorized, tagged , , , , , , on July 10, 2023| 7 Comments »

Photo: Still image of A1 Hand Car Wash surveillance video.
Ron Nessman stops a baby stroller that was freely rolling into the path of traffic after being blown by wind in California. 

I once read a mystery series in which a man spends all his spare time trying to track down the homeless man said to have pushed his wife and child into the path of a New York subway car. But appearances can be deceiving, as readers learn if they stick with the series.

I thought of those books when I read today’s story about a homeless man who stopped a runaway stroller.

Ramon Antonio Vargas reports at the Guardian, “Having experienced homelessness and unemployment for years, Ron Nessman was leaving a job interview at an Applebee’s restaurant in California when a baby in a stroller rolling into the path of several cars captured his attention.

“Nessman sprinted toward the stroller, stopped it before it reached the roadway, saved the child from harm – and landed his first job in years. …

“ ‘I didn’t even have time to think about it,’ Nessman told the local news station KOVR-TV when reflecting on his actions, which many have hailed as heroic. ‘You just react.’

“Unhoused for about eight years, Nessman had reportedly been living with his sister during recent months and was in need of work when he went to an Applebee’s in San Bernardino county to interview for a position washing dishes at the restaurant on May 1. Nessman had left the interview and was waiting on a bench outside when he spotted an extraordinary emergency unfolding.

“A woman had stopped on the driveway of a nearby car wash and loaded her great-nephew into a stroller when strong winds blew the baby away from her. The woman chased after the stroller but fell, and she struggled to get back up as she helplessly watched the baby roll toward a street which was packed with motorists who may or may not have been obeying a speed limit of 40 miles an hour.

“Nessman immediately jumped up from the bench, sprinted to the stroller and stopped it with his right hand as it approached the nearest traffic lane, according to dramatic video captured by a surveillance camera at the car wash. He turned the stroller around and began wheeling it up the driveway as at least eight cars who did not appear to notice the scene zoomed by.

“ ‘I said, you know, “I got it!” ‘ Nessman recounted. … I felt so bad for the lady. I got nephews and nieces. I can imagine something like that.

” ‘I wouldn’t have been able to live with myself if I did nothing.’ …

“The video of Nessman’s leaping into life-saving action circulated widely on social media. Nessman told the California news station KNSD that relatives as far away as Florida and Missouri had seen the footage.

“In his interview with KOVR, Nessman said he began experiencing homelessness after becoming deeply struck with grief over his girlfriend’s unexpected death.

“ ‘It was sudden and I didn’t want to do anything,’ Nessman said. …

“KNSD reported on May 4 that Applebee’s subsequently hired Nessman, and his orientation was scheduled for the next day.”

More at the Guardian, here. No firewall.

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A Win Against Goliath

Posted in Uncategorized, tagged , , , , , , on July 9, 2023| 7 Comments »

Photo: Goldman Environmental Prize.
Chilekwa Mumba took on a UK mining giant that was polluting Zambia — and won.

Today’s story shows how one person can make a difference, even when the goal is considered impossible. It’s also a cautionary tale, because you can win the battle and not the war. The irony is that powerful entities can excuse polluting a region in order to meet “green economy” needs.

Jocelyn C. Zuckerman reported at Yale Environment 360, “The southern African nation of Zambia is home to a wealth of minerals — in particular, lots of the copper and cobalt that the world will require to power a green economy. Among its largest operations is the Konkola Copper Mines (KCM), located in the country’s Copperbelt Province.

“In 2004, U.K.-based Vedanta Resources acquired the controlling stake in KCM, whose operations span 11 square miles along the Kafue River. Soon after, residents noticed that the Kafue was emitting foul odors. Fish began dying. Crops began to wither.

Livestock fell ill. And villagers came down with mysterious headaches, nose bleeds, rashes, and burns.

“Chilekwa Mumba, who had grown up in the region but since moved to the Zambian capital, Lusaka, learned of the problem and vowed to do something about it. In an interview with Yale Environment 360, he talks about how he spent the next several years facilitating meetings between the communities and British lawyers, gathering water samples, and convincing former mine workers to provide evidence for a lawsuit that made its way through the British court system. Finally, in 2019, its Supreme Court found that KCM’s parent company could be held accountable in the U.K. for environmental damage from the mine’s operations.

“Not only had Mumba, 38, who was awarded a Goldman Environmental Prize [in April], helped win significant financial compensation for the 2,000 villagers involved, but his case set a legal precedent that British companies can be held accountable for the environmental fallout of their operations overseas. …

“Yale Environment 360: KCM was already a presence when you were growing up in the town of Chingola. … You did your primary schooling in Chingola, so you got a good education in part thanks to the mine, which funded the schools? …

“Mumba: They had excellent schools. We moved to Lusaka when I was 15, but I still went to school under the mine system. I went to a boarding school that was supported by the mines, including KCM.

“e360: In 2004, Vedanta Resources, which is headquartered in the U.K., acquired a controlling stake in KCM. What happened after that?

“Mumba: When they took over, there was too much collusion with government. They were not being held to account on many different issues. Based on what I was reading in the media, I started talking to residents in Chingola. We’ve got family and friends there, and my parents still maintain a home there. I used to go back occasionally, but it became almost a permanent home when I started to find out about the reports [of pollution]. I began realizing that what I’d been hearing was correct. And I started to do my own investigation. …

“I went to the same spot I used to go to as a child to fish. … There were basically no fish, and the smell of chemicals was quite evident. The soil makeup was different from what I remembered when I was young.

“e360: Did you confront the company? …

“Mumba: I had a couple of meetings with a local lawyer representing the villagers, and he was telling me that nothing would happen, that I shouldn’t waste my time. But he did give me quite a bit of information, and I put it in my file.

“e360: You wrote letters to something like 100 law firms?

“Mumba: A combination of law firms and environmental NGOs, all over the world. I was just randomly sending them out from my Yahoo address. I got a lot of automatic replies. And then there was an automatic reply from [British law firm] Leigh Day, followed up with an actual email from a person, Katie Gonzalez. I can never forget that name. I happened to find it in my email and was surprised. They told me they would be there in two weeks.

“e360: How did the community respond to this British lawyer coming in? Did they trust him?

“Mumba: Not immediately. But the way he is — Oliver Holland, I have to absolutely mention him — he was a white guy in a remote village, but he has this aura about him where he is very friendly, so they warmed up to him.

“e360: What sort of evidence did you bring to court?

“Mumba: We gathered water samples and soil samples and found that copper, iron, cobalt, and dissolved sulfates were present far beyond legal limits. We also took in — though we did not put that to the court — blood tests for various clients, to test for the presence of heavy metals. We already had overwhelming evidence from the water and the soil.

“e360: Did you have help from anybody inside the company?

“Mumba: A former mine manager, who knew the whole process and how there was gross negligence on the part of pollution control, gave us a lot of documents. He, of course, did not want to be named, so we videoed his testimony using certain means where his identity could be withheld. …

“Because of my connection to the case, I would get random calls and they would say, ‘Can we meet you? We want to help you. But protect our identity.’ So I would meet as many as possible. I would talk to everyone. It was part of the investigation, to get all that evidence together. …

“At the time, funnily enough, I was working for a local law firm, as a business development consultant. But I abandoned that work and decided to do this. I honestly didn’t even think that I was doing an investigation per se. It all came together when I was just simply inquiring into all these issues. …

“e360: We know that copper and cobalt will be critical to the new green economy. Lots of people, including in the United States, want Zambia’s minerals. How does that help or hinder your position?

“Mumba: I see it as a very dangerous position, especially the thirst for cobalt. I feel like the communities around the mines have never gotten a fair share of the deal. America says the end game of mining is they want clean energy. Cobalt is one of the components for that. So right now we need to be more watchful about how these mining operations are taking place and what benefit goes to the community.”

More at Yale Environment 360, here. No firewall.

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A Church’s Hidden Gem

Posted in Uncategorized, tagged , , , , , on July 8, 2023| 4 Comments »

Photo: Loren King.
Art at St. Ann Art and Cultural Center, Woonsocket, Rhode Island.

For my first issue of a certain Boston Fed magazine in 2005, I was a bit panicked about learning the ropes of editing a new field. I managed to line up an article on a troubling change in bankruptcy law from Elizabeth Warren. And through my friend Nancy L, I talked to a guy who knew everyone in the community development field in the region and who put me in touch with Joe Garlick at the Woonsocket Neighborhood Development Corporation (now NeighborWorks) in Rhode Island.

And so it was that I got a memorable tour of initiatives benefiting residents of this former industrial town, where the rivers once ran with clothing dyes.

Today I learn that I better go back to Woonsocket and check out a particular church, now a cultural center.

Amanda Milkovits reports at the Boston Globe, “Swing open the heavy doors of this twin-spired former Roman Catholic church on an ordinary city street some Sunday afternoon, and enter a museum that takes your breath away.

“Elegant and intricate fresco murals soar across the barreled ceiling and along the walls of the nave, above the sanctuary and alcoves, and the choir loft. Scenes from Bible stories, and religious figures, saints and sinners, angels and devils, nearly glow from the frescoes’ warm pastel colors, painted in the style of the Italian High Renaissance.

“Years ago, Yankee Magazine dubbed St. Ann Arts and Cultural Center as the Sistine Chapel of America, and that’s no exaggeration. The former church, which is actually larger than the Sistine Chapel in Rome, is home to the largest collection of fresco paintings in North America.

“Its place here in this working-class city on the northern edge of Rhode Island, away from the tourist meccas of Providence and Newport, can make visitors feel as if they’ve discovered an incredible treasure.

“ ‘That’s why we say it’s the best-kept secret, and the worst-kept secret, too,’ said Joe Petrucci, a docent and volunteer. ‘Because it’s a wonderful gem, but not a lot of people know about it.’

“Along with the stunning frescoes, there’s the rich color and depth of 40 stained-glass windows made by artisans in Chartres, France, and the hand-carved marble altar and the marble stonework imported from Carrara, Italy. Outside, the church’s twin 165-foot cupola towers resemble those of the Shrine of Sainte-Anne-de-Beaupré outside Québec City, and have been an integral part of Woonsocket’s skyline for a century.

“But for the keepers of St. Ann, what makes the former church so distinctive to the city of Woonsocket is how an artist immortalized its residents in the frescoes.

“Guido Nincheri, an Italian-born artist considered the Michelangelo of North America, painted these ordinary people into his extraordinary artwork. The mill workers, the mischievous children, and those lost in World War II, and other residents were models for the 475 faces painted into the frescoes.

“ ‘Aside from the incredible, amazing art and the architecture, the stained glass and the marble work, my favorite part is the story of how it came to be. It’s a part of my heritage,’ said Dominique Doiron, St. Ann’s executive director and Woonsocket native, who was a parishioner until the church closed in 2000. ‘Especially in such a time of turmoil, to be able to look at something and go, What if we all just got along? Look at the great things that we can accomplish together.’

“Roll back the calendar more than a century, back when Woonsocket was nicknamed ‘Le Petit Canada’ for its large population of French-Canadians, who’d arrived in the city to work in the mills. This church on Cumberland Street, which opened in 1918, was the second French-Canadian parish in the city.

“The church was the social hub for its hardworking parishioners, and there were seven Masses on Sundays, standing room only, Doiron said. Though they were poor, the parishioners pooled together their own meager funds for the construction of their church, and later, for its beautification. …

“While the architecture was beautiful, there wasn’t enough money to complete the interior, so the gray stucco cement walls weren’t plastered. That would turn out to be a lucky accident.

“In 1925, the 35th anniversary of the founding of the parish, the parishioners raised money again to install 40 stained-glass windows, made in Chartres, France.

“During the Great Depression, the priest leading St. Ann’s still wanted to do something about those plain walls. the Rev. Ernest Morin visited different churches throughout Rhode Island for ideas, and ended up at St. Matthew Church in Central Falls, where Nincheri was painting.

“Nincheri had been knighted by Pope Pius XI as one of the great artists of the Roman Catholic Church and would win four papal awards for his work. He’d studied the Old Masters style in Florence and apprenticed in stained glass in Montreal.

“Nincheri had immigrated to Canada and later moved to Rhode Island, where he was working on churches and public projects. Morin invited him to visit St. Ann’s.

“ ‘As soon as he walks into the building, the first thing Nincheri notices is, Oh my God, the walls and ceilings aren’t plastered,’ Doiron said. ‘Now, he’s getting excited, because this is a rare opportunity to do the fresco style.’ …

“The technique, which reached its height in the Italian Renaissance, requires that an artist is both careful and quick, because there is no room for error.

“At this, Nincheri was a master. He explained the possibilities to Morin, how Michelangelo had painted the frescoes in the Sistine Chapel in Rome, and he could do the same here, at this busy Woonsocket church. They settled on a contract for $25,000 in 1940. …

“Nincheri told a reporter for the Woonsocket Call newspaper that St. Ann’s would be ‘America’s most beautiful church.’

“As Nincheri began the work, he studied the faces of people in the community. … ‘All of the faces were people of the parish and people of the city of Woonsocket at the time. He would always be on the lookout for a face that would fit a particular subject, and he would invite them to sit for him,’ Doiron said. ‘And what we now have here is a scrapbook, a pictorial history of who we now call the “Greatest Generation.” ‘ ” More at the Globe, here.

See also my 2018 post on a Sistine Chapel replica in Mexico, here.

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Urban Meadow, Rare Orchid

Posted in Uncategorized, tagged , , , , , , on July 7, 2023| 5 Comments »

Photo: RTÉ.ie (Raidió Teilifís Éireann), Ireland’s National Public Service Media.
One of the broad-leaved helleborines near the front arch of Trinity College in Dublin. Good things are growing in the city after No Mow May.

John made a good point about No Mow May the other day. The initiative to give a chance to plants that pollinators love has been growing, but why destroy the improved ecosystem by mowing in June?

Philip Bromwell writes at RTÉ (Ireland’s National Public Service Media) about an approach in Dublin.

“Two species of orchids have been discovered growing on the campus of Trinity College in Dublin city centre, much to the surprise and delight of botanists.

“The wild plants — a broad-leaved helleborine and a pyramidal orchid — have popped up in a lawn next to Trinity’s iconic Front Arch.

“Inspecting the 60cm [~2 foot] broad-leaved helleborine, Professor Jennifer McElwain, from TCD’s School of Natural Sciences, said … ‘It’s really unusual to find this orchid anywhere. It’s rare. It’s extra unusual to find it in the middle of Trinity, right in Front Square, in the middle of the city.’

“There are around 30 different species of wild orchids in Ireland. Some thrive in fields, others prefer bogs, woods or mountains.

“Professor McElwain believes the appearance of the orchids in Trinity are the result of the university’s participation in ‘No Mow May’ – the annual campaign that encourages gardeners to not mow their lawn during the month of May so that plants and pollinators benefit.

” ‘We wanted to implement a positive measure for biodiversity. So, we just simply stopped mowing this lawn in May. And that was difficult to do, because a lot of people really like finely cut lawns. But we stopped mowing, and this wonderful orchid began to emerge. And there’s not just one — there are three orchids, including another species. So, we actually have an orchid-rich meadow.

‘That’s a botanist’s dream and our only intervention has been to stop mowing the lawns.’

“Orchids have the smallest seeds of all flowering plants, with a typical seed the size of a speck of dust.

” ‘A seed could have blown in by wind. It could have come in on the feet of people, or been brought in by a bird,’ Professor McElwain explained. ‘Alternatively, this seed could have been in this lawn for decades. Underground, just waiting for the right conditions to allow nature to thrive. And the right conditions in this case happened to be not mowing the lawns.’

“Flower-rich, grassland habitats are rapidly disappearing from the island of Ireland and one third of our wild bees are threatened with extinction.

“Trinity installed wildflower meadows on College Green in 2020 after thousands of students, staff and members of the public voted to replace the manicured lawns at the front entrance to the university with the more nature-friendly alternative. …

” ‘I think this a really hopeful demonstration that biodiversity and nature can thrive if we just give it time and space. We are in the midst of biodiversity and climate crises. It can seem overwhelmingly complex to solve it, but it’s our responsibility to show what’s possible.

” ‘In this lawn alone, more than 35 plant species have come up. And if you think each one of those plant species supports one or two species of pollinators, that’s 90-odd species. If this lawn was a mown, clipped lawn, you would have a species diversity of one.

” ‘This demonstrates how simple measures can lead to really spectacular results. Never in our wildest dreams did we expect this,’ she said.”

More at Ireland’s National Public Service Media, here. No firewall. For more insight on the importance of meadows, see my friend Jean’s Devine Native Plantings, here.

How do you feel about giving up lawns? We have not had one for years, initially because neighborhood dogs kept destroying ours, but nowadays because we like the look of vinca. I do think that while a family’s kids are young, a lawn for outdoor games is pretty necessary, but not with weed- and bug-killers.

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Yo-Yo Ma: Nairobi Busker

Posted in Uncategorized, tagged , , , , , , , on July 6, 2023| 2 Comments »

Photo: Edwin Ndeke/The Guardian.
Kenyan classical musicians gave an outdoor performance in Nairobi recently. Cellist Yo-Yo Ma also performed that day. 

Do you know the cellist Yo-Yo Ma? He seems to be performing in a different country every day, and often he’s performing for charity. I follow him on Instagram, and I’m always amazed.

Caroline Kimeu wrote at the Guardian in June about Yo-Yo Ma’s recent visit to Kenya.

“Nairobi’s bustling Kenyatta market is an unlikely place to hear classical music. Yet playing today in front of stalls where butchers roast meat and hairdressers compete over heads to braid is a very surprising busker: the distinguished cellist Yo-Yo Ma. Playing ‘Over the Rainbow’ alongside Kenyan percussionist Kasiva Mutua, he matches his cello to her beats in a truly eclectic mix.

“Ma’s broad artistic sensibilities make weaving together the diverse musical traditions of drum and cello seem like a natural fit. ‘It was symbolic to introduce [classical] music to the crowd through something they know and understand,’ says Mutua. ‘Africans understand rhythm to their core.’ …

“Nairobi is Ma’s last stop of his Bach Project – a five-year, six-continent global tour. With its rising cultural and artistic scene, organizers say the city was near the top of the cellist’s list.

“The project marked Ma’s ambition to connect cultures and people across the world, performing Johann Sebastian Bach’s cello suites in 36 countries. …

“Bach’s cello suites were not well known by the time of the composer’s death in 1750. They began to resurface nearly a century later, and were brought to prominence in the 1930s when Pablo Casals, one of the world’s most highly regarded cellists, performed and recorded the neglected suites.

“Ma has recorded interpretations of the suites three times, with more than a decade between each.

“They are wrapped up with his life’s memories, he has said, citing his first encounter with Bach’s music when he was four: his father, Dr Hiao-Tsiun Ma, taught him the first suite in small, incremental steps. …

“ ‘For almost six decades, they have given me sustenance, comfort and joy during times of stress, celebration and loss,’ Ma wrote at the start of the Bach Project in 2018. ‘What power does this music possess that even today, after 300 years, it continues to help us navigate through troubled times?’

“Beyond busking, Ma takes to a more conventional stage with a concert at the Kenya national theatre. His audience now is a classical crowd – the [$145] auditorium tickets sold out in 24 hours – with prominent members including the arts minister, Ababu Namwamba, and the US ambassador, Meg Whitman. …

“Ma plays as though he is the only person in the room. Only the loud applause breaks through to him, earning his bow and embrace of the audience, arms flung wide. The solemn, lonely fifth cello suite – his penultimate performance – makes the auditorium fall silent.

“From a viewing room on the upper balcony, Brian Kivuti, a 34-year-old Kenyan jeweler, listens with closed eyes. ‘For me, it was a practice in presence,’ says Kivuti. ‘There are no lyrics telling you how to feel. It’s just the music and you, feeling your way through, so you pay more attention to how the notes make you feel. …

“ ‘When I started to listen with my body, I could feel notes of hope, the quiet of a Sunday morning, the dizziness of preparing for a party. The rise and fall of the notes allow you to tap into more than just everyday feelings.’

“At the theatre’s Wasanii restaurant, workers perched on rooftop balcony seats to watch a screening of the performance. For Margaret Wanjiru, a 22-year-old waitress, Ma’s music is a far cry from what she knows, such as her tribe’s Mugiithi. ‘It may not be the music I grew up with, but it slows you down, however much you’re busy, and allows you to get lost in your thoughts.’

“The Nairobi Orchestra, one of the oldest in Africa, performs ahead of Ma’s set, and its musicians are thrilled to have him in the auditorium. Violinist Bernadette Muthoni says: ‘For me, it was very huge to think that Ma was going to play just a few metres from where we were. He’s what a lot of us aspire to.’ …

“Ma is increasingly interested in using his work for social impact. He played outside the Russian Embassy in Washington DC last year to protest against its war in Ukraine, and dedicated his Songs of Comfort to providing solace for people during the difficult days of the pandemic.”

More at the Guardian, here.

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Papier-Mâché Gets Wild

Posted in Uncategorized, tagged , , , , , , on July 5, 2023| 3 Comments »

Photo: Ben Toht.
Liz Sexton’s rat mask for Halloween in Brooklyn, New York, a few years ago started her papier-mâché art career.

I’m guessing that nearly everyone who launches into serious downsizing finds a papier-mâché puppet head that a kid made in school — in my case, not only Suzanne’s puppet head but also one that I made around age 10. Clumsy as the heads invariably are, it’s painful to get rid of something that feels so much like an accomplishment.

Today’s story is about a woman who has raised papier-mâché to high art.

Alex V. Cipolle reports at Minnesota Public Radio, “Hunched over her work bench with a box cutter, Liz Sexton carves out the spikes on the back of a horseshoe crab. … The crab is papier-mâché and the size of a shield. Composed of more than a dozen layers of paper bags, its shell feels as strong as one, too.  …

“The crab is one of more than 15 papier-mâché animal masks and sculptures Sexton is preparing for her first-ever solo exhibition. The show, ‘Liz Sexton: Out of Water,’ [opened] May 5 at the Minnesota Marine Art Museum in Winona, Minn. …

“At her home studio in St. Paul, many of these animal creatures — an Atlantic walrus, a humpback angler fish, a polar bear — stare down at her from the shelves. Others are placed around the house in various stages of completion. …

“Her masks are incredibly lifelike. And papier-mâché is only step one. She can spend upwards of 100 hours on a mask, honing the details using woodworking techniques, be that carving more than a hundred tri-pointed teeth of a marine iguana, or using an orbital sander to achieve the milky smooth skin of a beluga whale. …

“Sexton receives commissions from around the globe, so they must withstand all the perils of international shipping. And the masks, she says, are meant to be worn, after all. …

“Her partner, Ben Toht, is a fellow creative and collaborator. He shoots photos and creates gifs of Sexton wearing her masks in the wild, which will also be featured in the exhibition. Watching the masks progress from their initial lumpy gumdrop shape, he says, is incredible. …

“Like many of us, Sexton learned papier-mâché as a kid — her dad taught her. For many years, she did it as a hobby. …

“ ‘I moved around a lot. I was in France and Germany,’ she says of her time living in small apartments in Europe. With papier-mâché, ‘you don’t need a lot of supplies or space. You get some newspapers for free, some flour and water, and you can make whatever you want.’ 

“In her free time, she would make costumes and props for weddings. The turning point was Halloween in New York, when she and Toht were living in Brooklyn. For the city’s annual Halloween parade, she made them masks of the city’s patron saint, the rat. 

“ ‘It was kind of incredible,’ Toht says. ‘With all the insanity of New York, and all the insanity of New York Halloween, these always got a lot of attention. People love the rats.’ They recall how people would chant ‘New York City rats’ at them. …

“Since then, Vogue Singapore has used her masks in video shoots. And the New York Times Style Magazine commissioned 70 animal busts for a star-studded 2019 event. …

“Sexton and Toht moved back to Minnesota from New York right before the pandemic. Her family, a family of artists, lives here. As Sexton rips up paper bags, she says they are surprised by her career, but very excited. …

“Sexton has also been an animal lover since she was a kid, and she’s particularly keen on marine life. Part of her artistic process, she says, is doing deep research into her subjects. 

“She talks with ease about how the blood of horseshoe crabs is used for vaccines or describes the unusual mating habits of angler fish. 

“ ‘Oh, another fun fact: Manatees can regulate their buoyancy by releasing gas from their bodies,’ she says, laughing. ‘I put that in the show notes because I thought kids would appreciate it.’ “

“Liz Sexton: Out of Water” runs through Sept. 3 in Winona, Minnesota. 

More at Minnesota Public Radio, here. No firewall. Delightful pictures.

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The Pigeon at the Opera

Posted in Uncategorized, tagged , , , , , on July 4, 2023| 6 Comments »

Art: Mo Willems.

One day in spring, the school that two of my grandchildren attend had a dress-as-your-favorite-character day. The school principal wore a Mo Willems T-shirt that warned, “Don’t let the Pigeon drive the bus.”

Did you love that book series? Now that all four grandkids are reading advanced books, I feel a certain nostalgia for the Pigeon days. Fortunately, I can still see Pigeon at the opera.

David Allen writes at the New York Times, “Do you know the words to the Queen of the Night’s stratospheric showcase from ‘The Magic Flute’? Maybe the Duke’s famous tune from ‘Rigoletto’? Carmen’s Habanera?

“No, not those words. The other ones: the words, at least, as they are now known to my 6-year-old daughter and the hundreds of children who took grown-ups like me to the Kennedy Center here recently for the premiere of ‘The Ice Cream Truck Is Broken! & Other Emotional Arias,‘ an experiment, including a short new work by the composer Carlos Simon, in what it might mean to draw a very young and impossibly demanding audience into a life in opera.

“See, you might think that Carmen is relating her views on love, but no. Listen closely, and you’ll find that the singer should have shared her cotton candy with her friends, and absolutely will … tomorrow. ‘La donna è mobile’? That’s about how milk squirts out your nose if you happen to laugh at exactly the wrong time. The Queen’s aria? That’s still about anger, but it now invokes something far worse than the vengeance of hell.

“ ‘This bicycle,’ it begins, in a fit of preschool pique, ‘is such a poo-poo vehicle.’

“Opera’s great composers have a new librettist, and he is almost certainly the only person who could induce an institution like the Kennedy Center to do something like this, let alone get Renée Fleming to join him in hosting it; inspire a quintet of young singers to ham their way through it; and persuade Simon, one of the busiest composers around, to crown the show with a 20-minute piece that gives an attention-seeking, picture-book Pigeon the prima donna spotlight it has surely always craved.

“The writer for it all? Mo Willems, who, it turns out, really loves opera! …

“ ‘It’s big emotions. … It’s direct communication. It’s interior dialogue. It’s self-discovery.’ …

“Willems has always been a broader artist than just a writer of picture books, though that task alone is such that he calls it ‘as easy as describing the history of Byzantium in three words.’ Some of his most celebrated characters — who include a venturesome plushie called Knuffle Bunny, the on-and-off best friends Elephant and Piggie, and that insatiable, inimitable Pigeon — had already starred in musicals that he had written before he formalized his long association with the Kennedy Center in 2019, when he became its education artist in residence. That three-year position coincided with the pandemic, to which he responded with invaluable ‘Lunch Doodles‘ videos, but it still let him explore a range of genres, including symphonic music, which he said ‘has always been important to me.’

“ ‘Beethoven’s Fifth is the easiest example,’ he explained, ‘but it’s basically the arc of an episode of television, or a movie: “Ba-ba-ba-baaam,” oh, it’s exciting — and then you take the theme, you take the theme, and then you build with it. So when I was writing a show called “Codename: Kids Next Door,” which is a silly sort of action comedy, I would literally write to the symphony.’

“For the National Symphony Orchestra, Willems painted giant abstractions to accompany a cycle of Beethoven’s nine symphonies, and he worked with the musician Ben Folds to adapt one of his books, ‘Goldilocks and the Three Dinosaurs,‘ for the concert hall. Hearing plans for ‘Goldilocks’ led Tim O’Leary, the general director of the Washington National Opera and a Willems-reading father of three, to inquire about a commission. …

“The author quickly sent him a copy of an Elephant and Piggie book — ‘I Really Like Slop!‘ — with the inscription ‘Tim, this book really sings.’ By their second encounter, Willems had the libretto in his head, a sketch of the characters in concert dress and a title: ‘SLOPERA!‘

“ ‘Obviously, once it was called the “SLOPERA!” we had to do it,’ O’Leary said.

“ ‘SLOPERA!’ could only be performed live outdoors on account of the pandemic, but an indoor recording, with piano accompaniment, was shown virtually to more than 300,000 schoolchildren. Piggie gets Gerald the Elephant to try slop, a stinky green delicacy among porcine foodies. He does, after his initial refusals upset his companion, and he endures the consequences in something like a bel canto mad (or death) scene. He recovers, though, and tells Piggie that while he might not like her food, he still likes her. …

“Willems said, reflecting on what writing his first libretto taught him, aside from the importance of placing consonants carefully. ‘If you look at a picture book manuscript, and you can understand it, it has too many words. If you look at just the illustrations, and you can understand it, the drawings are too detailed. They both have to be incomprehensible. It’s very similar with writing an opera, that the words that you’re using have to be dependent on the music, but the music has to be dependent on the words, and either of them shouldn’t really be able to stand alone.’ …

“[Oznur] Tuluoglu, a young soprano whose most recent prior role was Barbarina at the Annapolis Opera, took on the title character. ‘When you train, you have to be able to sing Mozart, you gotta be able to be a pigeon.’ “

More at the Times, here.

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