A common commitment to exploring the role of art in shaping people's attitudes to the environment will bring artists Diana Graham and Fiona Almeleh together with poet and literature teacher Dan Wylie at an event in East London next week.
A common commitment to exploring the role of art in shaping people's attitudes to the environment will bring artists Diana Graham and Fiona Almeleh together with poet and literature teacher Dan Wylie at an event in East London next week.
Wylie, who is Associate Professor in the Department of English at Rhodes University, has been invited to be the guest speaker at the opening of an exhibition titled “Deeply Ecological” in the Coach House at the Bryant Gallery in East London.
The exhibition runs from 25 April to 11 May 2013 and showcases Diana Graham's paintings and Fiona Almeleh's embroidered sculptures.
Both embody statements about their relationship with the Earth. A note on the invitation explains that the term Deep Ecology was coined by Norwegian ecological philosopher, Arne Naess.
Deep Ecology “captures the essence of global shift in consciousness in which we perceive our deeper identity as an ecological self which includes not just us as humans but all life on Earth” the artists explain.
Graham and Almeleh identify with this attitude to the environment and the relationship we as humans should have with it, as well as Earth as a whole.
In a telephone interview this week, Graham said her relationship with the Earth is so strong that it has become a lifestyle, giving it value.
“We are part of the life on Earth,” she said.
She describes her work as “visions of the sacred”.
Sacred art, she believes, is no longer encouraged in post-modern art, but forms an important part of her work.
She believes nature helps people get in touch with the spiritual. Almeleh says she has a profound love and respect for the Earth and believes respect for the Earth is a continuous commitment that all humans should make.
People, she says, are responsible for maintaining balance on Earth. “We as humans are just as important as everything else on the Earth. Our relationship with Earth will never end."
“To cut out the spirit is to cut out the soul," said Almeleh.
"It's time we value our natural world because without it, we will not be able to survive."
Wylie has looked at the role of literature in defining attitudes towards the environment.
His writings published on this subject include Elephants and Compassion: Ecological Criticism and Southern African Hunting Literature and Toxic belonging: Identity and ecology in Southern Africa.
His view on his role as a writer in the environmental cause is simple: “It's about loving the place you are in and doing something to save it.”
Wylie will speak at the exhibition opening at the Ann Bryant Coach House Gallery, East London on Thursday 25 April at 6.30pm.
More about Diana Graham's work: www.ecoshrine.co.za
More about Fiona Almeleh: www.fionaalmeleh.com
