Eiffel by [sic]

I come from a small agricultural town in Northern California where the line between nature and cordoned human life was never strict. Since leaving for college at age 18, I have more or less lived in large cosmopolitan cities: Los Angeles, Madrid, San Francisco, New York City. Now I know the nature of a human soul split between city and country.

The anthropocentric city connects human to human but disengages human from its natural connection. Electric light extends the day; buildings allow only a small degree glimpse at the movement of celestial bodies; our internal clocks are rearranged; a grid is laid over the structure and flow of life. The urban human is essentially unplugged from natural flow; “nature” becomes a life preserver thrown into a sea of concrete.

From this standpoint, “Eiffel” shows respect and astonishment with the feats of human while looking skyward and asking this question of “Where is Nature?” In this case, I believe an exclamation mark is a good addition alongside the question mark.[sic]

artist’s website: www.sic.ph
current project: www.iheart.org
See Eiffel (and other photos) on [sic]’s Flickr account

[sic] is a conceptual media artist whose works focus on the creation of emotive narrative architectures. His immersive and interactive installations cull influence from a hybrid terrain of theory and culture, informed by the moving image, pop, technology, the public/street, performance and music.

Vallone dei Mulini
photographed by Juan Salmoral

Vallone dei Mulini is an abandoned mill in Sorrento, Italy. The mill used flowing water as a power source to process raw materials for sale and trade. What used to be a bustling hub of human activity is now host to a diverse community of ferns. The dramatic topography provides a mix of moisture and lighting characteristics to accomodate many varieties of vegetation.

Juan Salmoral is a prolific photographer from Mataró, Barcelona, Spain. He is a seasoned traveller with an eye for structural and architectural beauty. More of his wonderful photos can be viewed on his Flickr account.

Juan’s Flickr Account: here

Untitled Puppet by Mark Dannenhauer
(photo courtesy of Nashoba Paddler)

“My work began with puppetry, primarily performance and international tours with the Bread and Puppet Theater. Then, my wife and I did our own tours, mostly within 20 miles of our then-home on scenic Mission Hill in Boston. Then, Jane become a school librarian and I started doing puppet making workshops. Over time, these workshops became more and more about making puppets of local animals. Thinking it might be good to actually know something about animals and habitats, I entered Antioch in 1998. I emerged from the Individualized Program two years later, self-titled degree in Community Landscape Interpretation in hand. So, that’s what I’m doing, Community Landscape Interpretation. I provide the tools and techniques, shape the design parameters, and assist with necessary problem-solving that community members use to create their own interpretation of local landscapes. My principal media are puppetry and photography, to which I’m hoping to add phonography (work with sound).”

- Mark Dannenhauer

Naked Trees by Aviva Cohen

“Last winter I began to photograph deciduous trees on my way to and from my job at New Hampshire Community Technical College. I was fascinated with the various shapes and structures of the trees that were only emphasized by the fact that they were bare of leaves. I would stop by the side of the road and snap them with my digital camera. I teach digital imaging and my favorite software application is Photoshop. I manipulated the images in Photoshop to create this montage. I sought to emphasize the structure of the trees and the way the branches grow out from the trunks, break into smaller branches and are silhouetted against the sky.” – Aviva Cohen

Contact Aviva Cohen – aviva114@comcast.net

Aviva Cohen earned her BFA in art education from the Massachusetts College of Art. She is an alumni of Antioch University of New England, graduating from the Experienced Educators program in 2003. She has taught Art grades 8-12 in Melbourne, Australia and Chelmsford, MA. Currently she is teaching Digital Design and Animation and Fine Arts at New Hampshire Community Technical College at Stratham and Pease. She works in pencil, watercolor, and Photoshop.