Nature and the City

About 2 weeks ago, we went to Tryon Creek State Park for an "art in nature" exhibit. Oreon artists created these masterpieces:

Lichen swaying in the breeze









3 gold bands on a tree representing the universal symbol Phi (supposedly it represents nature, philosophy, and about a million other things. Dan was inspired to read a book about it. not sure the title, but sounds pretty interesting!)












And my very favorite piece, this awesome bamboo creation. The first shot is wide, the second is a detail. I loved the symbolism and simplicity of this piece, and the way the artist used the natural materials to their advantage. I went to the Central Library to find out more about her work or other work like hers, and was surprised not to find very much. The reference librarian I asked told me to look up an artist named Andy Goldsworthy. What a cool guy!! He's scottish and he's done tons of work with nature and time and tides..uses nearly all natural materials and he creates his art in a way to ensure its temporary nature. Look him up, he's awesome!!













And now for the city...

A sculpture near our apartment that Dan says looks like the Sprint logo, but I think it is cool anyway:










Waterfall/fountain across the street from the Keller Auditorium on 3rd and Clay. On warm days, kids run and splash in the fountain and it is really pretty at night.









Taiko drummers at the "Under the Autumn Moon" festival last Saturday, Sept 30th. They looked soooo happy! The women were beaming. I wish I had a picture of the Shaolin monks to show you, but sadly we could barely see them ourselves because the crowd was so massive and the stage was so small!! They were pretty awesome, though. I also got a young Thai coconut and drank the juice and ate the meat. Very fun, but not as delicious as I might have hoped. We tried to check out a sushi demonstration, but the people watching were being so aggressively annoying I couldn't stand to stay in the tent very long.