I grew up in Eugene where one of the closest natural landscapes is the McKenzie River in the Willamette National forest. I have early memories of camping along that river, and summer trips on winding roads paralleling the river. The McKenzie is one place I can sit and observe in awe of its natural beauty. In high school we had a retreat at a cabin up alongside the river, such a serene place to detach from the world and reflect. For myself the river still holds a place of natural beauty and serenity.
Immediately after high school I moved to Brooklyn New York, In Brooklyn Heights there is a promenade that overlooks the Hudson and the Manhattan skyline. I was drawn to the promenade to sit on old park benches on top of a cobblestone walkway. This was a new type of beauty that I experienced, where something natural like the river was overshadowed by an industrial landscape. Everything was so man-made, but yet the landscape still contained a majestic appearance. The river was not as pure as some of the rivers I was fortunate to grown up with in the Oregon. But it was amazing to witness all the constant activity on the river. The Hudson was undoubtedly the city's lifeline, and acted like ventricles to the heart of Manhattan. I became a witness to the many expressions of how the river can be apart of one's life.Artists would flock to the Hudson River to capture its beauty. I spent most of my time in a pool underneath a gigantic Leroy Neiman painting of the river and the Brooklyn Bridge. During my time in New York City, there were many events taking place on the Hudson. A triathlon occurred to promote that the water is safe to recreate in, and in turn promote a new perception of the river with an added human connection to it. In summer a barge ship containing a swimming pool floated off the docks of the Brooklyn Naval Yard, where lines of people would flock to wade in its waters. Artist Olafur Eliasson installed waterfalls along the river, making a self created beauty.(http://www.publicartfund.org/view/exhibitions/5717_the_new_york_city_waterfalls) There are many ways in which a river impacts our lives, whether we are cognizant that we build our lives around rivers for various reasons. The definition of nature and context can change, “in most common speech and thinking, nature is understood as that state, condition, or quality that is before, separate from, or outside of society, human history, and volition.” (Robbins, Hintz, Moore 2014 p. 122) According to this definition that would mean that landscapes like the Hudson or Central Park are perhaps not natural. But when humans collide with natural landscapes, a new kind of nature is created, the nature in which we interact with the environment and where we are intimately connected to the river. We are learning about this connection now through the unfortunate history where “up until the fifties, sixties and seventies, people were directly discharging contaminant waste streams into the river,”(Profita, 2015) There are many lenses to think about nature and the symbiotic relationship between humans and the environment, a perspective that increasingly needs to be viewed as we move forward.
Profita, C. 2015 A guide to the Portland Harbor Superfund Site. Retrieved from http://www.opb.org/news/blog/ecotrope/a-guide-to-the-portland-harbor-superfund-site/ Robbins P., Hintz J., Moore S. 2014 Environment and Society: A Critical Introduction, Second Edition. John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
AuthorsWe are Portland State students who care about the urban rivers of the Pacific Northwest. Archives
May 2018
Categories
All
|