went to an amazing exhibition today in nyc
called "ashes and snow"
an exhibition of photography and film
by a man named gregory colbert
who spent 13 years in india
shri lanka, tibet and other places
photographing and filming
children, women and young men
interacting with elephants, whales
leopards
hawks
in the most haunting and surreal way
the exhibition space itself was haunting and surreal
called "the nomadic museum"
they basically stacked up cargo crates to form a 45,000 square foot
temporary structure along the hudson river that made one feel once inside
as though you had stepped into a dream
with the new age world music in the backtground
the images of children sleeping next to elephants
men swimming underwater with whales
a young girl dancing with a bird
and old women holding a wild cat
sleeping with three leopards at her side
and then a seemingly endless film of all these images
in motion
it was just so magical and surreal i did not have the words for it
then to step out from this onto the busy rush hour traffic of the west side highway
was surreal indeed
i understand the traveling show is making its way around the globe
and my god does the world need something like this
i spent an hour there
and i felt like i spent an hour incased in peace
slowing down my heart and my mind
breathing
remembering nature
feeling childlike
feeling calm
and wonder
oh how the world needs this today
today when nukes
in north korea
in maybe iran
threaten us
when so much of our world seems poised for demise
when men care only about forcing their religions on each other
forcing their domination on each other
forcing death on each other
we need to watch
children sleeping and dancing
and just casually, calmly being with nature
we need to remember how wondrous and fragile it all is
i want to dance with the elephants too
or at least to imagine it
