Footnotes to a Conversation, November 14, 2022
“Curiosity is insubordination in its purest form.” – Vladimir Nabokov
A Good Place to Live
Where would you rather spend your time – beside a busy, noisy road or in a pedestrian shopping area with restaurant patios, street musicians, flower beds, and lots of space to stand and chat or stroll without having to worry about getting run over? Downtown businesses that oppose bike lanes or restaurant patios are making a big mistake. Businesses thrive when they are part of a people-friendly landscape as opposed to the carcentric approach taken in the past. (Victoria has a huge parking lot beside the harbour. It would make a fantastic park.)
“Our research on smaller communities has found that community amenities such as recreation opportunities, cultural activities, and excellent services (e.g., good schools, transportation options) are likely bigger contributors to healthy local economies than traditional ‘business-friendly’ measures.”
The focus doesn’t need to be on shopping. A community garden in Akron has grown into a farmers’ market, providing local residents with entrepreneurship opportunities. There are also recreational activities around the lake and plans are in place for a trail connecting the different activities. [Reimagining the Civic Commons]
A Moment in Time
Edward Fu-Chen makes ink from native plants to paint watercolours of the places in which those plants can be found. It’s not a simple process. He needs to research the plants and their properties before attempting to make ink and find out what colour it is. Or if it has a colour as many don’t. “My mandate as a contemporary modern artist is to give a voice to the plants that are local,” Juan says.
“In exchange for his patience and surrender of control, Juan’s art is imbued with meaning. When he sees a piece he’s created, he doesn’t just see the image he inked. Instead, the colours transport him back to specific moments in his process – an insect bite he got while gathering materials at a swamp, or an ink that didn’t work out. As he puts it, the colours in his work ‘tell a memory story.’ And each print contains the unique colour palette of a single ecosystem, preserved in a single moment in time.” [Rewilding]
Photos from a quiet, sunny morning in Abkhazi Garden
Footnotes to a Conversation is a weekly Monday feature covering an assortment of topics that I’ve come across in the preceding week – books, art, travel, food, and whatever else strikes my fancy. I also post occasional articles on other dates, including frequent book reviews and travel tales.
If you share my love of nature, check out EcoFriendly West, an online publication encouraging environmental initiatives in Western Canada, and Nature Companion, a free nature app for Canada’s four western provinces.