In nature one is continually confronted by the power and internal complexity of the myriad of forms that appear to the human gaze. The desire to convey the power of the vortex form stems from the awareness of these complexities. We are not seeking to fully understand what principals create these forms, but rather to understand a language of shapes and patterns that constantly recur. The link between the form of the pine cone and the swirling stream can be explained and understood. Rather our task is to commit to memory what appears, record what best evokes the scene and to reassemble it in the editing process, capturing a sense of the creative dynamic that was there.
hidden nature
Spirals are a basic form of motion in Nature, the recognition that the vortex as the principal movement system in the Universe is a centre of our artistic research. From the Tornado to plant growth, it is nature’s mechanism for transforming energy from one level to another. The vortex is a window between different qualities or levels of energy. Black holes can be thought of as vortices linking different parts of the universe or even different universes. The vortex is most clearly seen with water, which uses votices to purify and re-energise itself into a new form. In walking along a river bank the attraction of following the flow of the water is ever present. The gazing into the stream follows naturally; lettting ones eyes slowing move into the swirling, vortex patterns. This state of rapture, experienced with vortex patterns is something we as landscape artists wish find ourselves deeply engaged with.
patterns
All life is motion. Natural movement is not straight lines, but spirals, or spiralling vortices. The spiral can develop in a number of different ways: as a vortex, moving upwards or downwards, round in a circle, or doubling back on itself.
the rules of beauty
The search for the perfect proportion, a shape for containment that is aesthetically pleasing, led to the discovery of the Golden Mean, or Section. The square is too mechanical, a long rectangle too awkard. The shape that ‘seems’ just right is a square rectangle with the proportions 1:1.618 or 5:8. It is also known by the Greek letter phi-pi. This turns out to be the magical proportions favoured by Nature in her designs. A series of these, reducing in size, form the perfect spiral. Many of Natures forms depend on pi for their generation, as it is one of the vehicles for transforming energy into form.
The work, 'Vortex - a celebration of nature', embodies these ideas of internal energy, revealed through the slowly changing surface forms. The movement of foam across the surface of water gives an indication of the complex and powerful vortex forms working beneath the surface.
For further discussion, we recommend 'Hidden Nature - The startling insights of Victor Schauberger' by Alick Bartholemew.
Quicktime video clip from'vortex':
Clip from vortex series (7 MB)
You will need Quicktime 7 to view these movies. It is a free download. To save the movies, ctrl+click (Mac) or right click (Windows) over the text link and select 'save target as' (Windows) or 'download linked file' (Mac).
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All text and images © hamilton & ashrowan 2006
