Environmental Art? I’d say so.

This is part of a series where I explore interesting pieces of environmental art.

I saw this earth tree metal working piece in an emergency pet hospital. It was not the best time to try to appreciate a piece of environmental art. I was dropping off my dog post-surgery to be observed overnight.

It’s a pretty cool work of art and it’s a map. (I’m a sucker for a cool map.) The continents of the earth are the leaves on a tree that has grown out of the ground where the animals roam. It’s a good message that you could dig in to on many levels – animals were here first; the continents have shifted as the tree grew up and spread out; the earth is a natural process and there’s continual growth and rebirth of these processes; ecological processes; it’s a mix of geology and biology.

I think that last one is what I like about it most. It merges geology and biology. It makes a statement that they are related and even can be interpreted that geology comes from biology, not the other way around. Although let’s be clear, the rocks were here first.

I asked the front desk about it and wasn’t surprised to find out it was made by a veterinarian who had worked there. This vet has a talent beyond healing sick dogs. It’s not just the message that makes this an interesting piece of art. Physically building it is impressive as well.

One more thought about it. It’s not a typical North American-centered map. I appreciate maps that give a differnent perspective.