Sunday, February 05, 2006

Where is the smell?


I woke up this morning after a decent rain. There is something magical about the smell when it has been dry for a while. Eucalypt, freshness... and then all that this evokes... new possibilities... past memories of similar days.

Smell is such a powerful sense but so easily ignored. What might smell sculptures be like?

I have found some interesting sites which show the latest in sculptures...
Kinetic sculpture - a robot arm which follows a satellite as it orbits around the earth.
Water sculpture maze which changes as people try to walk through it.
A sound sculpture in a street which people can tune into using their iPods.

Clay really in comparison is so boring. The end result is so static. Yet the process of bringing it to life is not. Feel a piece of clay and you are rubbing together Earth and Water. Fire it and you bring in Fire and Air. Paint it and you bring in Metal. Voila! The five elements. Hmmm. But where is the smell?

My favorite water sculpture.... Denison Beach near Bicheno on a northeasterly... the waves are huge and changing, masterly and powerful. The white noise is filled with rhythm that pulses with the body's soul beat. The spray cuts through your skin into your very essence. The smell is one of new beginnings. As you walk along the beach you feel the sand sink below your feet ... the earth subsiding and embracing you. The incoming waves dance in a way that requires your attention as you move in and out of them. The various layers of water lines on the beach remind you that you are on a planet with a powerful satellite and the more you come to this place the more you feel the rhythm of the tides.... the pull of the moon.

I haven't got a photo. You have to be there.

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