Nature's Patterns, the new exhibition in the Joinery is photography with a difference. It is Bob Brown’s way of looking deeper into the beautiful intricacies of our planet Earth.
Bob says ‘We are all part of nature, part of the pattern of life on Earth. And as the great architect of Barcelona Antoni Gaudi said ‘all creativity comes from the great book of nature’.
His exhibition ‘Nature's Patterns’ includes glimpses of both the random but repeated use of patterns in nature and the beauty of that patterning. For example, the patterns which are found on the extensive sand dunes around South Australia’s coastline make up a large section of the show.
‘Last year partner Paul Thomas and I took a long drive around the Great Australian Bight and were astounded by the unsung beauty of the extensive sand dunes on the Eyre Peninsula. It was winter and there was morning frost on the dunes. But the most striking features were wrought by the winds: both the smooth rounded dunes themselves, sometimes appearing like a huge pavlova, and the fine patterns the wind of the day was weaving on the surface of those dunes,’ Bob said.
‘We were reminded of eighteenth century English mystic poet William Blake’s famous ‘Auguries of Innocence’ beginning
‘To see a World in a Grain of Sand
And a Heaven in a Wild Flower
Hold Infinity in the palm of your hand
And Eternity in an hour ...’
‘Blake went on to vent his wrath on people who are cruel to nature and its beings.
We hope this exhibition will give viewers reason to think again about the rapid loss of Earth’s natural beauty (this coastline was also riddled with foxes and the impacts of off-road vehicles) under the pressure of eight billion people wanting more and more from our one finite planet. In the beauty of nature is a salve for every soul,’ he said.
The photographs will also feature in Paul and Bob’s forthcoming photographic book of their recent journey, including the Bight and the wild west cost of Tasmania, called ‘Green Nomads. Wild Places’.
Nature's Patterns will be opened Sunday 11th November and all are welcome. The exhibition will run at the Joinery, open on 9:00am until 5:00pm, Monday to Friday.
The opening reception will be held on Sunday 11th November from noon to 2:00pm at the Joinery, 111 Franklin St, Adelaide.
