Stone Paper - is the writing on the wall?

ZHANG JIANJUN

Existence Series, 1989

Acrylic, Chinese ink, Xuan paper, wood, stone, paper mache on canvas 
84 × 75 × 8 cm

“stone papers” contain 80% Calcium Carbonate (basically pulverized marble or limestone) and 20% High Density Polyethylene (HDPE—the same plastic that’s used in milk jugs and plastic bags).

Source: Tumblr

While there's not yet a lot of reviews about the paper, and whether it's really as environmentally friendly as it claims to be, it seems to be a good option when you look at the water consumption and energy savings in its production. They are said to use no water, no toxic chemical bleaches and use far less energy.  They are recyclable as well. (Read more)

From the Sketchy Musings Blog

I have also read that the paper is made from the waste product in quarries from the building and construction industry. If this is the case, and if the sludge from mining dumps could also be used, then this paper has my vote.

Read up, find out and speak up! What do you think - is this tree free paper a wonderful new innovation or just another gimmick tapping into a green consumerism market? Leave a comment, or email your thoughts to artlovenature@gmail.com

Source

"Imagine the Unthinkable" installation by Strijdom van der Merwe

"Imagine the Unthinkable", Strijdom van der Merwe, Installation View, exhibited at Circa on Jellicoe, JHB. Photograph from the BEELD.

Land artist Strijdom van der Merwe created an art installation entitled "Imagine the Unthinkable" as part of his exhibition 'Drawing clouds in the Karoo' at Circa on Jellicoe, Johannesburg. The installation comments and expresses the effects or nature of fracking, or hydraulic fracturing, planned for the arid and beautiful Karoo basin. Fracking entails drilling into the earth, and extracting natural gas from the shale layers by flushing a cocktail of chemicals and water down the shaft and into the rock layers to fracture the shale and release the gas captured in these layers. Strijdom's work makes use of maps of the actual sites for which drilling and fracking is planned, and uses sound as a device to accentuate the unnatural and disturbing nature of the process.

As with most industrial and mining processes, there is a lot of money to be made, and the companies who benefit from this have no qualms in doing what is needed to stake their claim and make their profits. At the cost of the environment, and the local people who need to live with the consequences - in this case the very high risk of contaminated ground water and reduced air quality caused by toxic pollution (particularly from the spent fracking fluid 'dams' and from cracks in the drilling shaft).

Van der Merwe does not perceive himself as a protest artist. His work usually rather enhances or encouarges an appreciation for nature's beauty. He aims to strengthen or accentuate the landscape's inherent beauty, and through this sometimes make people more aware about desertification, global warming and nature conservation. He often works in the Karoo, and therefore the risks or threat that fracking poses are a very real and personal matter.

Read more about the art installation:

• Stilte, skoonheid – en verset, on the BEELD website
• Review of Strijdom van der Merwe at Circa on Jellicoe by Ann-Marie Tully
• The fracking intrusion of a sacred space, by CHARLES LEONARD 

Read more about fracking in the Karoo:

• Treasure the Karoo Action Group: www.treasurethekaroo.co.za
• Greenpeace against Fracking
• Beginner's Guide to Fracking, on Karoo Space
• Fracking in the Karoo, by Cape Chameleon

Zapiro: www.zapiro.com

Want to see this go forward? Get involved!

The Green Your Art (GYA) initiative may seem like quite a young structure, movement or organization. But, it really isn't. Firstly, as an initiative started by visual artist Janet Botes, it has been evolving and transforming - first as "Greenivate" since 2007, then as "Ecojunki", but always with a central focus on encouraging acceptance, responsibility and compassion towards all living things and our planet. Secondly, it forms part of a larger and very important movement and awareness by an increasing mass of people. It includes people from all walks of life and artists of all types, levels and creative forms.

As much as I (Janet) have a passion for encouraging and supporting the use of natural materials, I am shifting my focus towards the creation, manifestation and promoting of my own art. My art hugely relies on the use of natural materials, found materials and 'waste' repurposing, and is primarily inspired by the natural landscape in its various interpretations. Currently the focus is on natural processes, rhythms and my aim is to inspire people to reconnect to nature - outside and within themselves - and thus to encourage healing, initially of human's disconnection to the natural world, and subsequently the healing and nurturing of our planet.

Which brings me to the purpose of this post - if you are passionate about the ideals and aims of the GYA initiative, and would like to become involved, please contact Janet at artlovenature@gmail.com. There will be a meeting in February or March 2013, regarding the future of the initiative. A GYA team will be formed, with shared responsibilities and a range of skills, to ensure this initiative is able to make a difference, and also that it has a sustainable and viable future.

Thank you for everyone who has been involved up to now with GYA, and who has worked towards raising awareness for environmental issues with me. Special thanks to Nicolle Basson, for your effort, work and involvement. 

When Great Trees Fall, by Maya Angelou

When Great Trees Fall

When great trees fall,
rocks on distant hills shudder,
lions hunker down
in tall grasses,
and even elephants
lumber after safety.

When great trees fall
in forests,
small things recoil into silence,
their senses
eroded beyond fear.

When great souls die,
the air around us becomes
light, rare, sterile.
We breathe, briefly.
Our eyes, briefly,
see with
a hurtful clarity.
Our memory, suddenly sharpened,
examines,
gnaws on kind words
unsaid,
promised walks
never taken.

Great souls die and
our reality, bound to
them, takes leave of us.
Our souls,
dependent upon their
nurture,
now shrink, wizened.
Our minds, formed
and informed by their
radiance,
fall away.
We are not so much maddened
as reduced to the unutterable ignorance
of dark, cold
caves.

And when great souls die,
after a period peace blooms,
slowly and always
irregularly. Spaces fill
with a kind of
soothing electric vibration.
Our senses, restored, never
to be the same, whisper to us.
They existed. They existed.
We can be. Be and be
better. For they existed.

― Maya Angelou

ARTSHIFT: Global Power Shift 2013

"We know that we are running out of time to stop our planet from becoming a very inhospitable place, and we know that our local organizing is the most important tool we have in this struggle. So just as co2 levels and extreme weather are on the rise exponentially - so are we. 

This June, 350.org will be organizing Global PowerShift an international gathering in Istanbul, Turkey, where 600 young climate leaders from around the world will converge to skill-share, trade tactics and connect on how we will be the generation that will turn the tide on the global climate crisis. Organizers will then return to their own countries and organize a regional gathering, developing regional campaigns, goals and actions connected to a global movement."

To do this, they need new creative tactics to have maximum impact!

 "We are up against the richest corporations in the history of money, so our currency will be our creativity. A major focus of Global PowerShift will be on creative activism, including workshops and skillshares in puppetry, mass production for mass mobilizations, subvertising, street art and street theater, creative non-violent direct action, activist animation, reality correction, and historical reclamation.

We will also be constructing an Arts Camp for the duration of the gathering to integrate creativity into the functioning of daily life while providing important encampment skills to Global PowerShift participants.

We need creative, impassioned and dedicated individuals to join us at this historic gathering, and to grow a globally connected network of creative organizers strong enough to reclaim our future from the fossil fuel industry. Apply now to join us for Global PowerShift, deadline for applications has been extended to 4 January 2013. Participants will have all expenses covered."

Take a minute to share this invitation with anyone you think might be interested or share the ArtShift webpage on twitter or facebook. For this to be a success we need diversity in all aspects and will need to reach outside just the “climate” movement - this is, afterall, a struggle as big as our planet that involves many different movements. Please encourage anyone to apply who you think would contribute to and benefit from this crucial gathering.

Do it now, we’ve got no time to lose.

The gathering in Istanbul is only the first phase of this project, we’ll need many more dedicated individuals to participate locally in one of the hundred regional PowerShifts and in the hundreds of local campaigns and projects beyond that. If you can’t apply, but wish to stay in touch, please email art@350.org

This callout was sent by 

Kevin, Art Ambassador for 350.org

Read more and get your FAQ answered by clicking here