COSMOLOGY, BIG BANG AND THE MULTIVERSE

Where? Oil on linen 50 x 50 cm 2013

 

 

GRAVITATIONAL WAVES

In the last couple of days big news has hit the media. Big news about the BIG BANG! Scientists have detected evidence of the signature of gravitational waves generated in the nano-seconds after the BIG BANG. These waves support the theory of cosmological inflation. They also give strength to the theory that we do not exist in a Universe, but a Multiverse!

 

Here are a couple of articles about this momentous discovery for you to read:

• On Smithsonian.com A New Cosmic Discovery Could Be The Closest We've Come To The Beginning Of Time by Joseph Stromberg
• At Scientific American BICEP2 Makes Waves In Cosmology: Now What? by Max Tegmark

And here's a link to a video showing the reaction of the physicist Andrei Linde, who first came up with the theory of the inflationary Universe, when he was told that recent data and observation confirmed his theory as likely. Physicist Rejoices As He Learns His Big Bang Theory Is Correct

 

 

COSMOLOGY, BIG BANG AND THE MULTIVERSE

In light of this recent announcement I thought I'd 'curate' an online exhibition of some of my paintings that have been inspired by cosmology, the BIG BANG and particularly ideas of a Multiverse:

 

I first uploaded  Where? [above] in a post titled Looking In The Rear Vision Mirror - Cosmically Speaking In this post I wrote about the rear vision mirror metaphorically as, 'The rear vision mirror presents us with the fascinating potential for keeping an eye on the past, as we live in the present and look to the future.' I also wrote,  'Where? implies a question about a physical position, but it can also ask about a position in time. The image could be the birth of the Universe, as if seen in a rear vision mirror, which is kind of what happens when cosmologists and astronomers examine images of newly discovered cosmic entities. Light reaching us now started its journey eons ago; the past licks at our heels, and sends light and shadows into the future. But, if we don't look out the windows or look into the rear vision mirror we might miss the light and be caught in the shadows.'

 

 

The Universe Draws You Out Like A Multidimensional Horizon
Oil on linen 50 x 50 cm 2014

 

 

The Universe Draws You Out Like A Multidimensional Horizon [above] was inspired by many things but also Australian author Tim Winton's marvellous speech at the Royal Academy in London, November 2013. In my previous post about this painting I wrote, 'So...yes...perspective invites us to also consider horizons, both literal and metaphoric. Indeed, contemporary cosmological research is pushing our horizons in all directions. For example, the Universe maybe a Multiverse...now that's a huge shift in horizon don't you think!'

 

After the release of the discovery of the signature for gravitational waves generated at the BIG BANG I'd say horizons have dramatically shifted. In fact, are there any really?

Dizzying Perspective Oil on linen 50 x 50 cm 2014

 

 

In my earlier post for Dizzying Perspective [above] I wrote, 'Dizzying Perspective is similar to an earlier painting which I called Where? This painting asks questions too, indeed its title is a question. It asks about time and space. Both paintings, I sense, move beyond their physical limits of size ie: 50 x 50 cm. There is something quite satisfying about painting an image of Universal vastness on a 50 x 50 cm canvas! A bit like the size differential of Dr. Who's marvellous Tardis.'

 

Surrendering Horizon Oil on linen 100 x 150 cm 2014

 

In Surrendering Horizon I have...surrendered the horizon! What does this mean? In my earlier post for Surrendering Horizon I wrote, 'In Surrendering Horizon I have 'torn' the horizon line away from the landscape. It now seems to draw the landscape towards new perspectives, as it enjoys relinquishing its tethered state. It almost playfully entices the landscape to reach out, and in this process, lifts its 'eyes' towards Universal [possibly even Multiversal] distance.'

Multiverse Oil on linen 80 x 100 cm 2011

Now to my painting actually called Multiverse. I was so inspired by the idea of a Multiverse, that I had to paint the image that sprang into my head. I first read about the idea in Astrophysicist/Royal Astronomer Lord Martin Rees's fascinating book Just Six Numbers. I wrote this in my earlier post, 'The image that sprang to my mind is a tree with small portal-like 'windows' or 'eyes' dotted amongst the branches, each created by a kind of swirling or vortex action. These portals are more obvious from a distance, because they interrupt the pattern of the tree. Up close, they are still visible, but the interruption to the pattern is not as obvious. I suppose it is a bit like seeing a peacock proudly unfold its plumage, compared with looking at only one feather. The magnificence of the fanned plumage is breathtaking and patterns are discernible, yet one feather, still beautiful, only whispers.'

And here's a link to another Multiverse post called Multiverse Possibilities

The Beginning of Everything Oil on linen 90 x 180cm 2010

 

 

And, now to EVERYTHING! Yes, EVERYTHING. My painting The Beginning of Everything certainly took some persistence to paint, as you can see from the detailed line work. In my earlier post I wrote, 'I had this idea that I wanted to paint an mage which 'spoke' about the beginning, those nano seconds after the Big Bang. What would the 'landscape' be like? I wanted to paint an image which gave an impression of those nano instances, but also the presence of whatever it is/was that set it ALL in motion.'

 

I think The Beginning of Everything is a multifaceted painting! It gives an impression of expansion, inflation...waves even! I am very fond of this painting.

 

And...now to a Landscape Of Everything

 

 

Landscape of Everything Oil on linen 80 x 140 cm 2013

 

In Landscape of Everything I imagined lots of things...well one could suggest 'everything'...including that the coloured balls are each a Universe! So the painting is another inspired by ideas of a Multiverse.

 

 

Other Worlds Ahoy! Oil on linen 80 x 90 cm 2013

 

In my previous post I wrote, 'Other Worlds, Ahoy! also continues my thoughts on untethering notions of landscape from being Earth-bound. In an age where cosmological research is discovering more and more about the close and far distances of the Universe, even suggesting a Multiverse, I believe we have a great opportunity to re-interpret 'landscape' with new perspectives. And...that this may provide new insights for all kinds of sustainability and even new ways of being.

With Other Worlds, Ahoy! a dominant landscape provides an horizon, yet is the viewer in this landscape or hovering above it? Is it Earth? Other planets...even Universes...worlds...hover too. Is the viewer on another of these? Or is the viewer in some kind of spacecraft madly negotiating a safe pathway to another Earth-like planet, a new 'home'? '

 

 

I hope you have enjoyed COSMOLOGY, BIG BANG AND THE MULITVERSE

 

I am not a scientist and I am not a science illustrator. However, I am very interested in harnessing science in a way that communicates awe, wonder and imagination. I attempt to link this within an art historical framework eg: discussing notions of landscape.

 

Cheers,

Kathryn

www.kathrynbrimblecombe-fox.com

 

 

LIFE TAKES A COSMIC PERSPECTIVE

 

Life Takes A Cosmic Perspective Oil on linen 91 x 137 cm 2014

 

If the entire history of the Universe were rescaled to one year, humans wouldn’t appear until 14 seconds before midnight on December 31. Big History Project

 

This certainly puts things into perspective!

 

Regular readers will know I have written about the Big History Project before. It is an education program designed to stretch our understanding of the Universe and humanity's place within it. Such a broad perspective lifts our gaze so that we see all the close and far distances of the micro and macro. My previous posts are Time Travelling  and Complexity

 

Life Takes A Cosmic Perspective

In this new painting I have imagined life, represented by the age-old transcultural/religious tree-of-life, taking a journey. It weaves its way into Space, travelling around a planet before seemingly turning back to reflect upon where it has come from. The tree is firmly grounded on a Mother planet. Will it release itself once it knows more about itself and the 'environment' it has explored? Will it return with new knowledge, insight and wisdom? Is the Mother planet Earth? Or is the green planet Earth? Maybe neither is Earth? Maybe both are Earth? One representing a denuded landscape, a result of an apocalyptic event and the other Earth's past fertile glory. There are many alternative interpretations. Just the way I like it! Playing with perspective!

 

So, as you imagine life taking a cosmic perspective what do you see?

 

My reactions to imagining a cosmic perspective are a mixture of comfort, frustration and hope. Comfort that I am part of something much bigger than me and that one day I will return to its source. Frustration that contemporary society seems to be developing habitual responsiveness to the short distance between computer or phone, thus very often missing the opportunity to appreciate a broader perspective on issues. The short distance between a person and a phone, according to an optometrist I spoke with, is causing myopia at younger ages. As a metaphor for myopic understanding its pretty frightening! But, I am hopeful too. Hopeful that contemporary cosmology, the study of the close and far spatial and temporal distances of the Universe [maybe even Multiverse], will catapult perspective, in its multiplicity of dimensions, into everyday thinking and experience. It is far too fascinating and inviting to not look up, out and beyond our phones. Crossing fingers!

 

The tree in Life Takes A Cosmic Perspective not only explores new perspectives of its original environment and its wider Universal environment, but in turning back on itself it also sees itself differently...or maybe its the first time it has reflected upon itself? Perspective is not just about seeing our world and our universal environment differently, but also ourselves.

 

TREE OF LIFE

Regular readers will know of my fascination with the age-old transcultural/religious tree-of-life symbol. I believe age-old symbols hold truths that are meaningful across ages. The tree's symbolism of life transcends time. I attempt to unleash the tree-of-life from traditional visual interpretations to extract and reveal meaning that is relevant in the 21st century. I see the tree's branches as representative of systems of all kinds both natural and human-made...but all promoting and sustaining life....revelling in the awe...shifting our perspective...dancing across the Universe. The tree helps me create what I call cosmic landscapes...acknowledging that concepts of landscape need to be untethered from Earth-bound horizons...to help shift our horizons and add to our understanding of perspective.

 

The tree is both a conduit and a connector, to past and future history, to our Earth and to the energy forces of the Universe. As a symbol of the urge for life it goes way beyond the 14 seconds before midnight on December 31.

 

 

Detail of Life Takes A Cosmic Perspective - Work in process

 

 

STANTHORPE $20,000 ART PRIZE

My painting Super Earths Discovered is a finalist in the award.

 

The exhibition of finalist paintings and some 3D works is really good. I am pleased to have been chosen to be a part of the exhibition. My painting 'Super Earths Discovered' hangs with some great company. However, I did not win the prize. An artist from down south, Dena Kahan won...and a big congratulations to her! You can see details of the exhibition, the Stanthorpe Arts Festival and an image of Dena's winning work by visiting the Arts Festival page HERE

And here's an article which appeared in the local Stanthorpe Border Post

 

Cheers,

Kathryn

www.kathrynbrimblecome-fox.com

THE BLANK CANVAS

ART HISTORY

In 2001 I became a University of Queensland student again. I had been given an opportunity to undertake a PhD in Art History. The Art History Dept had put together a bridging program for me. This included an Honours subject 'Aesthetics For Art Historians- Theory And Practice In Art History'. Yep, hefty title!

I completed the bridging program and did very well too I might add. But, I decided I wanted to keep painting. It had become very clear to me that trying to juggle being a single Mum with three very active children under 8, studying with an aim to claim top marks and keep a painting practice alive, was not going to work. So, rather than giving up my painting, I decided to not continue with the PhD enrolment.

One of the assessments for the honours subject was a 3,000 word essay on 'The Blank Canvas'. Essentially we were to examine Belgian scholar Thierry De Duve's essay/chapter 'The Monochrome and The blank Canvas' in his book 'Kant After Duchamp' with reference to an exhibition which was hanging at the University's Art Museum. This exhibition called 'Monochrome' was curated by Brisbane based curator David Pestorius.

Apart from the academic and theoretical aspects of the essay, as an artist I really enjoyed thinking about the blank canvas. This enjoyment has stayed with me. Why? Because the academic and theoretical route made me aware of my enjoyment, which is both intellectual and emotional! Some might say that this awareness may stymie spontaneity, but when you paint consistently, it becomes part of a creative tool kit that extends concepts of medium. It also introduces the idea that each blank canvas is a repetition of every blank canvas and each artist's experience with it. This couches me within an Art History which is about the artist's experience.


DELIVERY OF BLANK CANVASES

Yesterday, I had a delivery of some new stretched linen canvases. I have taken a photograph of them [above]. From the moment I order them I am thinking about them, imagining their size and how they might 'speak' to me. I look forward to their arrival. These new ones will sit around my studio, in various places, over the next days and weeks. I am currently working on a painting, so will not get to put paint on the new stretchers for awhile. Yet, as I stand and sit at, and walk back and forth from,  my easel I see the 'blank canvases' and my imagination 'paints' images on them...actually each one has many images over its life being deceptively 'blank'.

Ah ha...so are the canvases ever really 'blank'? Is there really an answer to that question?

By the time I do put brush to linen a canvas has had many incarnations...many imagined paintings. In a way, the imagined images inspire the one which is ultimately manifested...they exist within the layers of memory.

And...can I tell you...that first brush stroke! Making it is like a play between life and death. The anticipation is both exciting and forbidding. The beauty of the pristine and taut whiteness is quite seductive. So making a mark upon it is touched with an exhilarating melancholy. I know, sounds weird, but it's hard to put into words.

 Detail of painting I am currently working on...yep another cosmic one!

TECHNIQUE

As regular readers know I paint in layers. Firstly one colour which is tempered with splashes of turps with the canvas either lying flat or standing upright. The splashes of turps cause dripping or pooling which reveals the whiteness of the canvas beneath the colour, yet not entirely. The whiteness is veiled. Then there is a second layer, treated in a similar fashion to the first. Randomness and accident, deliberately introduced, have fun with the canvas. Once dry, I paint with more precision, using smaller brushes, finer lines and more. Ultimately the blankness and whiteness of the canvas is seemingly annihilated. Yet, we know what lies underneath. It never truly departs. It's own history and that of every blank canvas lives on.

Some artists leave areas of white or blank canvas, working the visual effect into the context of the painting. I really admire this technique, but it's something I don't do. I've tried, but it does not feel right for me. And, I am not into mimicry.


MONET

I remember seeing Monet paintings, in the flesh, for the first time. I was surprised because often, between his brush strokes the viewer can glimpse the 'blank' canvas. My Art History, up until my late teens/early twenties, came from books with photographs of important artists' paintings. And, photographs of paintings flatten images subduing aliveness, giving a strange impression of perfection. So, it was with some astonishment that I noticed glimpses of raw or white canvas between brushstrokes, not only in Monet's work, but also artists like Constable and others. In the flesh, they are so much more alive than in a photograph...I do say to people that a good painting will never look as good as it really is in a photograph, but a bad painting will, more often than not, look much better than it is! Now, that's another subject entirely!

Me standing in front of a Monet 'Water Lilly' painting when I was working as a Curatorial Assistant at the National Gallery of Australia, Canberra, 1981.

STANTHORPE ART PRIZE UPDATE

I went to Stanthorpe on Friday for the opening and announcement of the $20,000 Art Award. Stanthorpe is a 3 hour drive south-west of Brisbane. I stayed the night with a school friend who I had not seen for ages.

The exhibition of finalist paintings and some 3D works is really good. I am pleased to have been chosen to be a part of the exhibition. My painting 'Super Earths Discovered' hangs with some great company. However, I did not win the prize. An artist from down south, Dena Kahan won...and a big congratulations to her! You can see details of the exhibition, the Stanthorpe Arts Festival and an image of Dena's winning work by visiting the Arts Festival page HERE

And here's an article which appeared in the local Stanthorpe Border Post

And here's a photo of me with my painting 'Super Earths Discovered'

Cheers,
Kathryn
www.kathrynbrimblecombe-fox.com

NEW WORLD HABITABILITY: VACATION ANYONE?

New World Habitability: Vacation Anyone? Oil on linen 70 x 102 cm 2014

 

All the talk about possible Earth-like...even super-Earth-like...planets being discovered, 1000s of light years away, has sent my imagination into overdrive.

 

Firstly though, what makes a planet potentially Earth-like? It needs to be in the 'Goldilocks zone' of a star...a zone where it is not too hot nor too cold, thus predisposing it to potentially having water and therefore possibly sustaining life. This orbit area is actually called the habitable zone. 

 

But what is intriguing me is the possibility that newly discovered Super-Earths, may provide not just plain ordinary habitability, but SUPER-habitability. That means they may be more habitable than our own Earth. We tend to think of our planet as being generously and generally habitable. We use, abuse, augment, love, traverse, sustain, mine, farm, destroy, ogle, paint, reserve/preserve, film our wonderful Earth. Until relatively recently we've not necessarily thought about the long term impacts of our more industrious uses of Earth's land, water and air....the things that make it habitable for us. Yet recent realisations, debates and weather events have made us feel somewhat vulnerable.

 

[You can check out the Super-habitability theory HERE Once you have read this just Google for more info.]

 

Ok...so it's a long-shot that there are super-habitable Super-Earths out there somewhere. The search for them is thoroughly tantalising though, for many reasons. The 'pastures greener on the other side' gives hope that when our Earth reaches its demise, either at our hands or with our Sun's death throes, there's somewhere better for us to go. I suggest, that even though it's a loooong shot, this makes us feel slightly less vulnerable. After all we do have faith in science and technology, and you just never know what capacities and capabilities they will provide us in the future...space travel and more.

 

And, my goodness, when we arrive at our new super-home other creatures may greet us! Space playmates maybe? The imagination certainly helps blur the borders between science fiction and science. Yet, a fertile imagination and a sense of wonder are necessary for both.

 

New World Habitability: Vacation Anyone?

And, my painting New World Habitability: Vacation Anyone? is meant to be fun...but also thought provoking.

 

The landscape from which the tree-of-life grows is not lush and green. It's as if the last seed has found the final place for growth. Is this barren landscape our future Earth? Maybe...maybe not. The tree, however, reaches out searching for other life. Two planets are visible, one green and lush with ample water, the other perhaps a little colder and icier. The tree's branch searches for life amongst the cosmos, seeking habitable zones around distant stars. The viewer is unsure whether the tree misses the lush planet, or whether another tree, out of the picture, has also found a new 'home' or maybe a place to vacation! Imagine sharing our super-habitable Super-Earth!

 

And, here's another scenario. What if, in the far distant future, some Earthlings are sent to other planets, that turn out not to be all that habitable, but not totally hostile...like the sparse and spare landscape in the foreground of my painting. What if there are THE Chosen who remain on Earth, which has blossomed with the aid of 'Super Science' and massive forced de-population? Maybe the lush green planet is Earth, albeit an augmented one?

 

It does not really matter what the description of the painting is. The thing that really interests me is humanity's constant search for life. My much loved age-old transcultural/religious tree-of-life does it again! It symbolises life, in a meaningful way transcending time and transporting us to eternal possibilities.

 

UNTETHERING LANDSCAPE

New World Habitability: Vacation Anyone? is another attempt to untether concepts of landscape from Earth-bound horizons. If not a complete untethering it certainly provides a few different perspectives, literal, metaphoric and symbolic.

 

 

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Here are some other posts where I have written about a search for a new 'home'.

 

Seeking Home: An Online Exhibition of Selected Cosmic Paintings  This is a short story.

 

Flick Of A Switch: Some Thoughts About Two Films This starts with a very short story. I then discuss the films Elysium and The Hunger Games [no 1] where there are populations of The Chosen and those that are not.

 

 

Stanthorpe Art Prize.

The award is announced on Friday night 28 February. My paintings Super Earths Discovered is a finalist. Shall keep you posted!

 

Cheers,

Kathryn

www.kathrynbrimblecombe-fox.com  I have recently updated my website, so please check it out.

SEEKING 'HOME'- An online exhibition of selected cosmic paintings.

 Are We There Yet? Oil on linen 80 x 140 cm 2013

Ok, we're going travelling...into 'Space' to other 'planets'...well in our imaginations anyway.

And, these paintings are going to help us.

Sit tight!

....................................................................................>


Imagine the balls in Are We There Yet? are our nifty hi-tech spacecraft. We're safely tethered together as we trip across the red skies cloaking the rugged landscape below. Is it Earth? Maybe, maybe not?

But who keeps asking 'Are we there yet?'
Where yet? Where are we going? Do we need to go somewhere? Where are we leaving? Will we return? Have we actually left?

Suddenly, we skim the surface of the planet in On My Travels I Saw sweeping in a low arc across its steely landscape...as if it's our last chance...our last gasp...a good bye.

We drift...and then...

On My Travels I Saw Oil on canvas 90 x 100 cm 2013

 

Ah ha! We are now flying towards what seem like more planets, like mini-planets. Strange indeed.

 

And yet, they seem vaguely familiar. A strange sense of playful juggling entices. What is being juggled? Who are the jugglers? Is it really playful? As we get closer we realise remnants of landscape tilt and sway, debris of a past existence. Not playful at all...a ruse perhaps?

 

A disquiet enters the atmosphere.

 

We try to look back to where we have come from...it's gone!

 

 

 

Playing With Landscape Oil on linen 80 x 90 cm 2013

 

 

We flounder, we go Here To There And Everywhere in our minds, hearts and bodies. We seek an anchor, a point of reference...home. 'Ahoy!' we call, anyone there?

 

 

 

Here To There And Everywhere Oil on canvas 60 x 110cm 2013

 

 

Seeking, seeking, seeking...the habitable zone. What? Our mission is at last revealed. We're seeking an alternative Earth, a new home. And, it might be a SUPEREARTH! But, it has to be just right, like Goldilock's porridge, not too hot and not too cold...meaning there might be water! Water!

 

We remember water, oceans and rivers...rain. Our imaginations drink it in, float upon it, swim.

 

Other Worlds Ahoy! beckon, seduce, entice...but we must be careful of  'mermaids' seeking hapless travellers.

 

The tree...a symbol of life. It stirs our viscera, knowingly.

 

Hope...

 

 

 

Other Worlds Ahoy! Oil on linen 80 x 90 cm 2013

 

 

 Super Earths Discovered Oil on line 80 x 140 cm 2013

 

Lucky us! We find our alternative Earth in the Goldilock's zone of another star.

 

There's water, a fresh atmosphere, flora and fauna of all kinds. Some of it is a little familiar, some not. It's abundant...one could say SUPER abundant. Our SUPEREARTH has SUPER habitability, not just plain ordinary Earth-like habitability.

 

The memory of Earth tugs on our consciences.

 

Value?

 

Are we there yet?

 

 

 

 Planet $ Oil on linen 30 x 30 cm 2011

Cheers,
Kathryn
www.kathrynbrimblecombe-fox.com

 

LANDSCAPE WITH A VIEW

Landscape With A View Oil on linen 90 x 140 cm

 

There are a number of ways to interpret Landscape With A View and the idea of 'landscape with a view'.

 

The landscape, in Landscape With A View, has a literal view/s. It has a view of itself and one of the Universe with all its multiple perspectives...just like any real landscape. There's the inward gaze and the outward one, each revealing a plethora a views! But, maybe there's another landscape, from a nearby planet, that is 'viewing'?

 

There's another way to interpret 'view'. If we imagine Landscape having some kind of consciousness, maybe it has a 'view' of how it is used, changed, regenerated, destroyed, loved, depicted, valued, dissected, nationalised and more? James Lovelock's Gaia Theory suggests that the Earth is a sentient being capable of self-restoration and replenishment...so perhaps this sentience has a self reflective or referential element enabling it to transform as needed? But, the question I ask myself is...would Earth be the only planet with these abilities?

 

To go a bit further...if you imagine the Universe as the largest 'landscape' and that everything in it is comprised of elements created at the Big Bang, then we humans are 'landscape' as well. We are star dust too. But, are we the only conscious beings in the Universe? Indeed, if there are other conscious beings they will also be part of the large Universal landscape. Yet, until we have proof of their existence, it's our eyes only 'taking in the view'. However, with sight and experience we form opinions, make judgements, reflect and form viewpoints. By engendering a kind of anthropomorphism of Earth, and even other galactic entities, do we give them a kind of  'sight' and therefore possible viewpoints?

 

Landscape With A View

So to my painting Landscape With A View. There is no horizon line. Rather there is a kind of reflectivity of and within landscape, creating a sense of multiple landscapes. In fact, this painting relates to an earlier one I actually called Multiple Landscapes The idea of multiple landscapes suggests that each witnesses the other, acknowledging existence...ongoing. The viewer ie: you and me, is in relationship with the literal landscape and also depictions of it, like my painting. And, as part of the landscape...remember the star dust...we are both viewer and the viewed.

 

In Landscape With A View the eye is drawn by light into the image where the landscapes meet, slightly off- centre. Yet, whilst the reference to mountains, valleys and other landscape elements is evident, the placement of these forms against a dark and brooding Universal sky slices into the perspective, transforming the 'negative spaces' into 'landscape' as well. The vibrant colour is like a fissure in dark space, perhaps  a promise or a safe haven, yet maybe a dangerous lure.

 

 

Multiple Landscapes Oil on linen 80 x 140 cm 2013

 

Untethering Landscape

So as regular readers will know...I am attempting to untether notions of landscape from Earth-bound horizons. The genre of landscape painting is as old as mankind. From early rock paintings, to traditional and contemporary depictions, landscape is a pervasive kind of visual anchoring for humanity. But, as modern cosmology is revealing more and more about the Universe I suggest we need to extend our concepts of landscape to orientate humanity with new kinds of anchors...cosmic ones! I am not a scientist and I am not interested in illustrating or providing 'artists' impressions' of newly discovered planets, energy forces or other phenomena. What I am interested in doing [or attempting] is to capture a kind of awe, to seek out symbolic meaning, connect the past and future, visually explore concepts of literal and metaphoric perspective, stir excitement, pose questions.

 

 

STANTHORPE ART PRIZE

My painting, chosen as a finalist in the $20.000 Stanthorpe Art Prize, will be collected by the freighters on this coming Friday. The exhibition opening and prize announcement is Friday 28th February. Fingers crossed.  My painting is Super Earths Discovered

 

OTHER NEWS

I am opening Korean born artist Sung Kyo Kim's first exhibition East Meets West: Chinese characters meet pop-art. The exhibition dates are 20 February - 2 March at Graydon Gallery, 29 Merthyr Rd, New Farm, Brisbane, Australia. Sung's paintings are informed by traditional Korean folkloric techniques which he uses to transform Chinese characters into pop-art visual good wishes.

Please check out Sung's website HERE

 

 

Cheers,

Kathryn

 

SIXTH SENSE

Watching The Universe Gouache on paper 30 x 42 cm [unframed]

 

The farmer...was pointing out that the rain had the cotton crop’s attention – pointing out a change in demeanor of the crop that only a farmer could notice.

My brother, photographer Wilfred Brimblecombe, wrote this in a recent post on his BLOG Wilfred Brimblecombe: Photography, Stories, Ephemera future and past

It made me think about sixth sense...that feeling you get when you know something might happen, an intuition, a knowing, a connection.

Wilfred was writing about a photograph he had taken, a marvellous image of rain falling... but evaporating before hitting the ground. The photograph was taken on a farm not far from the grain farm where we both grew up. The owner of the property, where Wilfred took the photograph, is a childhood friend. He has been on the farm all his life, over half a century. You can see Wilfred's photograph by clicking HERE

In the foreground of the photograph is a cotton crop. The heavy clouds release rain, like a lace curtain against a far off sunset. Yet, the rain does not hit the ground. The flat horizon provides a clear and dramatic backdrop for the suspended rain...a suspended promise.

The farmer's sense of knowing...his sentient connection to his crop...as if he feels the crops relief that rain is on its way. Now that's interesting!

Elemental Oil on linen 50 x 94 cm 2009

 

SIXTH SENSE AND SNAKES!
I'll tell you about some more instances of sixth sense. And, these involve me and snakes.

As regular readers know, I grew up on a grain farm and then spent nearly two decades further west, in Goondiwindi, Queensland, Australia. We had many experiences with snakes on my parent's farm, especially during Spring and Summer. My brothers and I very quickly developed a sixth sense about where and when snakes might appear. I realise now that this was just part and parcel of being connected to the land...a knowing.

So to three snake stories...and there were many more than that...but three will do.

In Goondiwindi I lived on acreage outside town. I developed a large and beautiful garden. I mowed with a ride-on mower...it took me hours! Parts of the garden were more wild than others and if it had rained the long grass was rampant. I remember mowing grass that was about 60cm high. It was thick and lush and I had to force the mower through its density. I came to the outer garden fence, where there was a large gate, which I normally opened to mow both sides so the gate could open and shut easily. But, something held me back...a sense of dread...a sense of someone else being there. So instead of leaping off the mower, trudging through the grass to open the gate, I gingerly stood up, my feet straddling the mower. I could see a large, long, fat and luscious king brown snake entwined around the gate. Boy, did I sit down quickly, foot on the accelerator, going backwards.

On another occasion my brother Wilfred had come to visit us in Goondiwindi. We went for a walk in the garden and then took off over the paddock of long grass and assorted prickly plants. Suddenly I said to Wilfred, 'Stop!'. There was nothing under foot and no unusual sounds, but I had a sense of another presence. Sure enough, a huge king brown snake rustled through the grass heading towards the creek. Wilfred, almost sadly, lamented that after years of city dwelling he had lost the sixth sense of snake detection! Big sister still had it though!

But, my detection skills were not so good once I moved to the city too. Although one does not expect to see snakes in suburbia! Not long after I moved to the city I was walking along my street, just off the footpath, with some friends. It was dusk and we were going to a local restaurant for dinner. Suddenly I felt a strange tug at my skirt, at thigh height. I looked down at the same time as taking a powerful swipe with my hand. I saw the fangs of a snake gripping my skirt, lifting it out with the impact of my thwack! The snake released its grip landing a few meters away from us. We ran! I could not get over it...being struck by a snake in inner city suburbia, after years of frequent encounters with them out west. If I'd had a short skirt or pants on, the snake would probably have bitten me...ye gads!

Cosmic Dust Oil on linen 120 x 160 cm 2010

ENVIRONMENT
So, sixth sense? I suggest we develop it by close and recurrent interaction with our environment. We become almost one with the world, nature, patterns of life, systems. Farmers develop very acute sixth senses, like my brother's friend mentioned above. I am sure we all have various powers of sixth sense and intuition, but how are these affected as we become more separated from the natural world? We may develop other kinds of sixth sense that connect us to technology, but nature does seem to have a way of reminding us of its glorious power and strength in the face of the manmade! In fact, is it demanding us to take more notice of our separation from it?

COSMOLOGY
And, what does modern cosmological research expose to us? The outer reaches of our 'environment' must include the Universe, from the quantum to the cosmic. New close and far perspectives demand our attention...look up and out from your iPhone and computer screen! The star dust within us is calling, agitating for our attention. It feels the possibility of a connection beyond our Earthly horizons...as if it wants us to re-ignite its/our sixth sense in cosmic terms. Dormancy is not an option... is it?

Remembering The Reason Why Oil on linen 100 x 60 cm

LAST QUESTION
And, one last question for this post...And, if our sixth sense, in relation to land and nature is diminished, how does this parlay into concepts of landscape?

Infinity Oil on linen 100 x 70 cm 2011

 

Here are two other recent posts which also discuss possible outcomes of a separation from the natural world. Both are about cars and driving. Intrigued...click on the links.

LOOKING OUT THE WINDOWS
LOOKING IN THE REAR VISION MIRROR-COSMICALLY SPEAKING

Cheers,
Kathryn
www.kathrynbrimblecombe-fox.com

 

SURRENDERING HORIZON

Surrendering Horizon Oil on linen 100 x 150 cm 2014

 

I return to the concept of 'horizon'. Yes, the concept...horizon as a metaphor as well as a literal element of landscape. But then again 'landscape' can be used as a metaphor for our internal psyches. The dance between the literal and metaphoric entices, excites, probes and ultimately extends the 'horizon/s' of our thinking.

 

I wrote a post recently called The Universe Draws You Out Like A Multi-Dimensional Horizon The painting and the post were inspired by well known Australian author Tim Winton's speech The Island Seen and Felt: Some Thoughts About Landscapes: presented at the Royal Academy in London, November 2013. You can listen to it at the Royal Academy's site HERE  The idea that horizon exists within us, to be drawn out by the Universe is really exciting. It alludes to the fact that we are part of the landscape, not separate from it, physically, emotionally or spiritually. After all, when we die we literally return to 'landscape' in burial or cremation. And, when our planet finally reaches its demise, a few billion years away, we and Earth return to the stars...to the 'landscape' of the Universe.

 

In Surrendering Horizon [above] I have 'torn' the horizon line away from the landscape. It now seems to draw the landscape towards new perspectives, as it enjoys relinquishing its tethered state. It almost playfully entices the landscape to reach out, and in this process, lifts its 'eyes' towards Universal [possibly even Multiversal] distance.

 

The untethered horizon offers the opportunity to look back from its playful place...to look back at Earth...and to look back at Earth placed within its Universal environment. Indeed, from a distance, not only is the planet visible for scrutiny, but so is its position amongst other celestial bodies. I wonder how important manmade borders and boundaries appear from distance that places Earth within a Universal perspective? I wonder how vulnerably beautiful our planet looks...this vulnerability and beauty imploring us to think more expansively about how we live on, love and share Earth?

 

Regular readers will notice my tree...the age-old transcultural/religious tree of life. Notice that I have painted it the same colour as the mountainous horizon and the untethered one. I'll let you think about that!

And, something else to think about. The title Surrendering Horizon ...is the horizon surrendering itself or are we surrendering it...or both?

 

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And, more about landscape. My brother Wilfred Brimblecombe has recently taken some amazing photographs of the landscape surrounding the family farm, which was sold in the 1980s. Please visit his website WILFRED BRIMBLECOMBE: Photography, Stories, Ephemera future and past  There are a couple of terrific photographs of rain falling but evaporating before it hits the ground.

 

 

Cheers,

Kathryn

www.kathrynbrimblecombe-fox.com

 

 

DIZZYING PERSPECTIVE

Dizzying Perspective [inspired by Tim Winton] Oil on linen 50 x 50 cm 2014

 

 

Dizzying Perspective relates to my last two posts and their accompanying new paintings Falling Out Into It and The Universe Draws You Out Like A Multi-Dimensional Horizon Yes, again the terrific speech The Island Seen and Felt: Some Thoughts About Landscapes by Tim Winton at London's Royal Academy in November 2013 has struck a chord of inspiration in me! You can hear the speech HERE

 

Dizzying Perspective is deceptively simple....so say myself! For me....there are many questions-Are we drawn towards the dark circle? Are we propelled away from it? Is it the only point of reference? Is it solid or is it a new portal? Where am I in relation to the 'scape' before me? Is it a vast 'scape' or a microscopic one? Is the dark circle Earth or is it a galactic body seen from Earth? Or, maybe Earth is nowhere around in this part of the Universe? Where am I?

 

I am sure you might have even more questions.

 

Words by Tim Winton, which I previously quoted in my earlier post Falling Out Into It, have again inspired me:   At night in the desert the sky sucks at you, star-by-star, galaxy-by-galaxy. You feel as if you could fall out into it at any moment. It's terrifyingly vertiginous.

 

VERTIGO

This time the bit that got me excited is It's terrifyingly vertiginous. Why? Because, I sense that Winton uses the word terrifying, not simply to suggest a scary physical experience where loss of balance and dizziness induce stumbling and nausea. Metaphorically speaking terrifyingly vertiginous may be more about the revelatory possibilities of new insights and perspectives revealed in the process of letting go...falling out into it.

 

But, I want to return to my previously mentioned ideas of untethering landscape from Earth-bound horizons. The terrifyingly vertiginous experience of falling out into the Universe is provocative, because it invites us to let go of Earth-bound horizons. It actually demands us to leave the safety of the known to welcome new perspectives of ourselves, our planet and our Universal environment.

 

FEAR

Essentially, I think, Tim Winton suggests we confront fears of letting go, fears of the unknown, fears of shifting perspectives. I've been with people who are literally fearful of the distance in the Australian landscape. These people, mainly city born and bred or from Europe, actually expressed their fears in words and with real physical reactions. They felt more than uncomfortable with the open skies and the vast often desolate distances. Their physical reactions were obvious: strange tiredness, gripping themselves or anchor points in a vehicle, normally confident gaits affected by trepidation, eyes darting hither and thither...all signs suggesting a sense of vertigo. But, maybe we need to place ourselves at the mercy of distance, fall out into it, let go...and in the terrifying vertiginous experience we may discover new ways to live and be, new questions and thus possible answers to problems that are plaguing us with their intensity and danger. Who knows? But, I suggest it is worth trying!

 

Dizzying Perspective is similar to an earlier painting which I called Where? This painting asks questions to, indeed its title is a question. It asks about time and space. Both paintings, I sense, move beyond their physical limits of size ie: 50 x 50 cm. There is something quite satisfying about painting an image of Universal vastness on a 50 x 50 cm canvas! A bit like the size differential of Dr. Who's marvellous Tardis.

 

 

Where? Oil on linen 50 x 50 cm

 

 

GOOD NEWS

My entry for the biennial $20,000 Stanthorpe Art Prize has been selected as a finalist. This means that the actual painting now gets sent to Stanthorpe to hang with the other finalists and to be considered for the prize which is announced at the end of February. I shall keep you posted!

 

Cheers,

Kathryn

www.kathrynbrimblecombe-fox.com

 

THE UNIVERSE DRAWS YOU OUT LIKE A MULTI-DIMENSIONAL HORIZON

The Universe Draws You Out Like A Multi-Dimensional Horizon [Inspired by Tim Winton]
Oil on linen 50 x 50 cm

 

 

I am again going to refer to Australian author Tim Winton's wonderful speech The Island Seen and Felt: Some Thoughts About Landscapes: presented at the Royal Academy in London, November 2013. You can listen to it at the Royal Academy's site HERE

 

My previous posts, where I wax lyrical about the speech, are ENCOUNTERING LANDSCAPE and FALLING OUT INTO IT The latter is also the title of a new painting, inspired by a phrase in Winton's speech.

 

Now to another of Winton's phrases which also struck chords with me, On my island the heavens draw you out like a multidimensional horizon... His island, is Australia...my island too.

 

Regular readers will totally 'get' why this phrase grabbed my heart and my imagination. I often write about my ideas on the need to develop skills in seeing multi-perspectives [even simultaneously]. I am sure that modern cosmology, with its exciting explorations into close and far distances, is inviting us to see new perspectives. AND, with these new and multiple perspectives, potentially seen simultaneously, who knows what new questions and answers, ie: metaphoric horizons, will be revealed!

 

So...yes...perspective invites us to also consider horizons, both literal and metaphoric. Indeed, contemporary cosmological research is pushing our horizons in all directions. For example, the Universe maybe a Multiverse...now that's a huge shift in horizon don't you think! But Winton's words that the heavens [ie: the Universe/Night sky] draw you out like a multidimensional horizon suggest that horizons are not just 'out there' but that they exist within us, as if we are landscape too, as if we have horizons imbedded in our psyches connecting us with the Universal landscape of existence. As Winton's speech seems to suggest, in the distance of the Australian landscape there's space to sense these horizons, be absorbed by them, discover new ones...or maybe even return to them?

 

My new painting above The Universe Draws You Out Like A Multi-Dimensional Horizon is one of the images that came to my mind when I read Winton's evocative words. The three coloured lines create amorphous shapes which mirror many of the patterns and shapes seen under a microscope, but also seen in Space. The play between the micro and macro is deliberate, yet at the same time the viewer feels drawn into a portal, as if finally finding a connection to the Universe, in all its diversity...a dance with all horizons.

3D
Many of my paintings go 3D when viewed with 3D glasses [not the movie ones though...simple ones] and this painting is one of them. The longer you look at it the more 3D it goes with each line separating even further as if it is tugging at you...yes tugging at your inner horizons!

 

Are We There Yet? Oil on linen 80 x 140 cm 2013

 

 

THE MOON

Two interesting website/articles have made me think more about horizons...being drawn out of us. One is a collaborative artwork/project called The Moon by two famous artists, Ai Weiwei and Olafur Eliasson. It's a site where, once logged in, people can draw on the Moon! You can read more about the project in a ARTnews article  'How Ai Weiwei and Olafur Eliasson Got 35,000 People to Draw on the Moon' by Robin Cembalest. You can draw on the Moon by clicking HERE [Firefox or Chrome].

 

The Moon project is interesting because it gets people thinking beyond Earth-bound horizons, even if they are doing in the short distance between themselves and their computer. It is also significant because as Ai Weiwei is restricted from leaving China, yet he is able to collaborate with Olafur Eliasson in a project that has attracted thousands of people from around the world... AND, it's 'on the moon'! This poses interesting questions about man-made boundaries and borders, which indeed pale into insignificance when 'viewed' with a lunar, or even better a cosmic, perspective. The power of imagination is up to the challenge to breakdown restrictions that keep perspective limited! I think projects like Ai Weiwei's and Eliasson's The Moon are more than important.

 

THE FIRST ASTRONOMERS

The second thing of interest is a fascinating article in The Melbourne Age called The First Astronomers, by Andi Horvath. It's an article about Australian Indigenous Astronomy. As the opening sentence says As Australia has the oldest continuous culture on Earth, the first Australians were very likely to have also been the first astronomers. The article goes onto discuss how astrophysicist Ray Norris and wildlife expert Cilla Norris in 2008 documented Aboriginal Astronomy stories told by community elders. This resulted in their book Emu Dreaming: An Introduction To Australian Aboriginal Astronomy. The Melbourne Age article goes onto discuss astrophysicist Alan Duffy's recent experiences, teaching indigenous and non-indigenous astronomy, in schools in the Pilbara.

 

There is one section of the article that got me really thinking...yes about perspective...and horizons:

Dr Duffy explained to the students that Indigenous astronomy is a great example of how sophisticated Aboriginal science and culture was through its development. He also explored the fundamental difference in the way traditional European astronomy conceives the constellations by connecting the dots of stars to form pictures attributed to Greek mythology, whereas Aboriginal astronomy connects not just the stars but also the black spaces in-between. Two different ways of viewing the same night’s sky!

"The school kids were very excited by the “emu in the sky” which stretches out in what European astronomers call the Milky Way,” he says. “Once you see it, you can never look at the Milky Way the same way again. As a constellation, it is far more convincing than the obscure European pictures."

So...for me key phrases are: Two different ways of viewing the same night’s sky! and ...you can never look at the Milky Way the same way again. Methinks Tim Winton's observation that On my island the heavens draw you out like a multidimensional horizon...is spot on!

Cheers,
Kathryn
www.kathrynbrimblecombe-fox.com

 

FALLING OUT INTO IT

Falling Out Into It Oil on linen 70 x 120 cm 2014
[Inspired By Time Winton]

At night in the desert the sky sucks at you, star-by-star, galaxy-by-galaxy. You feel as if you could fall out into it at any moment. It's terrifyingly vertiginous.

[Quote: 'Wild Brown Land' an edited transcript in 'The Australian' December 14, 2013 of The Island Seen and Felt: Some Thoughts About Landscapes by well known Australian author Tim Winton, presented to the Royal Academy, London, November 14, 2013.] You can listen to the speech HERE

AMAZING WORDS
Tim Winton's words are amazing. When I read them, and others, images popped into my head and resonances were deeply felt. In a recent post  ENCOUNTERING LANDSCAPE I write more generally about the speech and my reaction to it. However, there are some phrases that have stayed with me, their words mulled over, eliciting the kind images in my mind that asked to be painted.

I grew up on a grain farm on the flat treeless Pirrinuan Plain, outside Dalby on the Darling Downs, Queensland, Australia. I remember vertiginous feelings when, as a child, I'd lie on soft clover staring at the sky. I remember my Dad had a marvellous vegetable garden that also grew the lushest clover. I'd lay down on it and immediately feel like I was flying and sinking at the same time...that is until the day I noticed the prickles had started to form!

The vast sky of my childhood, uninterrupted by mountains or trees, has stayed with me. During the day it was mostly a relentless blue. But, now and then storm clouds would roll majestically across the plain. These clouds, nuanced with colours of grey, black and indigo blue were sometimes tinged with a green hue, a sign of hail. At night the sky, if uncluttered by clouds, glittered with the Milky Way, a swathe of jewel-like lights. My grandmother, a keen star gazer, often took my brothers and me out into the night to see various constellations, our necks bent back so we could take it all in. However, a stormy night sky was another experience. Lightning giving momentary spotlight to features we knew well, as if demanding us to take notice.

'...FALL OUT INTO IT.'
So, the quote from Tim Winton's speech grabbed my attention! The significant bit is fall out into it. Not fall out from it, but fall out into it, as if gravity might release its grip on us. These beautifully simple few words capture so much of my thoughts about perspective, distance...and the possibilities that new ways of seeing, new perspectives, can reveal different questions and answers to the issues that plague humanity.

We possibly need to feel a sense of terrifying vertigo in order to disrupt the norm, to recalibrate senses, to disturb the status quo, to re-ignite awe and wonder...and more. To deliberately welcome this kind of disruption, and even agitate for it, is quite subversive, don't you think? Agitation does not have to be outrageous, aggressive or in-your-face. Indeed, maybe a deliberately
contemplative state leading to a kind of dizziness that helps to ultimately shift perspective is more revolutionary than trying really hard to make a point via didactic means, aggressive and not? Maybe, lying down on the grass to stare at the sky, welcoming that sense of falling into it, is all we need to do, both literally and metaphorically. Yes, let's look up from our smart phones and computers!

I love the idea of 'falling out into it' for another, but related reason. Regular readers will know of my interest in untethering notions of 'landscape' from Earth-bound horizons. The idea of 'falling out into it'...into the Universe...is a way to assist imagination to grasp the concept! The cosmos is calling, imploring...

Falling Out Into It Oil on linen 70 x 120 cm 2014
So, to my new painting. With Falling Out Into It I wanted to create a 'landscape' that was ambiguous in orientation and locale. I wanted a sense of transparency where parts of the landscape revealed the cosmos through itself, as if the viewer could move into and beyond the 'landscape', like a traveller through time and matter, ultimately becoming time and matter... or maybe remembering them? I wanted to create a sense that the viewer was literally falling out into the night sky, the Universe. Yet, there's a possibility of grabbing onto the 'landscape' of mountains too, before letting go and travelling further...! Metaphorically speaking...think of the possibilities for psyche.

Falling Out Into It is similar to another painting I did last year. Multiple Landscapes [below] also has a sense of disorientation. It's a painting that explores the possibility of seeing multiple perspectives, even simultaneously. And, I'd suggest that in a vertiginous state one would see multiple landscapes especially if you kept your eyes open! Now there's a clue....

Multiple Landscapes Oil on linen 80 x 140 cm 2013

Happy New Year to you all!
Cheers,
Kathryn