Travelers’ eyes

From spiral-jetty.blogspot.com:

Dear Friends,

Yesterday I received an urgent email from Lynn DeFreitas, Director of Friends of the Great Salt Lake, telling me of plans for drilling oil in the Salt Lake near Spiral Jetty. The deadline for protest is 13 of february. Of course, DIA has been informed and are meeting about it today.

I have been told by Lynn that the oil wells will not be above the water, but that means some kind of industrial complex of pipes and pumps beneath the water and on the shore. The operation would require roads for oil tank trucks, cranes, pumps etc. which produce noise and will severely alter the wild, natural place.

If you want to send a letter of protest to save the beautiful, natural Utah environment around the Spiral Jetty from oil drilling, the emails or calls of protest go to Jonathan Jemming jjemming@utah.gov

Every letter makes a big difference, they do take a lot of notice and know that publicity may follow. Since the Spiral Jetty has global significance, emails from foreign countries would be of special value.

They try to slip these drilling contracts under the radar, that’s why we found out so late, not through notification, but from a watchdog lawyer at the Southern Utah Wilderness Alliance, the group that alerted me to the land leasing for oil and gas near Sun Tunnels last May.

Thank you for your consideration of this serious environmental matter.

Be well,
Nancy Holt

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Power lines in the desert near Dubai,
taken by Mariana Canepa Luna during a recent visit to Sharjah, UAERSA

Arts & Ecology supports the work of the arts in examining and addressing social and environmental concerns in an interdisciplinary and international arena. The entire programme is informed by the notion of ecology as the study of relationships between an individual and their cultural, social, political, economic and natural environments, and by the belief that the arts can play a central role in providing creative insights into the challenges facing contemporary society.

Initiated in April 2005, the programme has since consisted of a series of initiatives including conferences, ongoing discourse, international research trips, education pilots, artists’ projects and commissions, and a publication. The RSA is creating a growing network of groups and individuals concerned with the issues - alongside and working with other organisations who have similar concerns. These include Tipping Point, Cape Farewell and Arts Catalyst. More information about these projects can be found throughout this website.

Over the next three years, the ambition of the RSA Arts & Ecology programme is to become an international hub and a portal to increase the level of information and exchange. The project will act as a catalyst in seeking to involve a far greater number of artists, while simultaneously supporting, profiling and helping develop the visibility of artists’ work, sharing the outcomes and experience with others.

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On 8th March 2005, Steve Messam and six gallant volunteer artists floated seven large red inflatable balls, ranging from 6ft to over 12ft diameter on the tranquil waters of Grasmere, Cumbria. The half-mile long installation remained on the lake for 4 days before a change in wind direction and overnight gales forced the removal of the temporary piece.

The other idea of the installation is to challenge people’s ideas of things in the Lake District landscape and to raise awareness of the inovative arts scene in the Lakes.

The piece was supported by the Cumbria Tourist Board, the National Trust, the Lake District National Park Authority and South Lakes District Council.

© Tony West

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