A Plan Comes Together

It fascinates me that sometimes when inspiration comes, it's everywhere I look. I like that! My challenge to visualize the connection of all life on Earth has been catapulted forward, again with help from friends, new and old.

My new working title is One & All. I hope it sticks as I progress through the production process…I like it.

 

Kristin Reiber Harris   Star sequence

I have mentioned my work the Donna Iona Drozda, artist and creative counselor. At some point a few words or comments from Donna sparked something that resulted in the first viable draft of my script for this project. What a great feeling. It created a framework while shining a light on a path forward. What more can you ask for.

 

I realized my script would be poetry and reference the continuity/connection of all life while our heroine moves in and out of a physical presence. A fanciful approach was what was needed. Here is the first stanza.

 One & All
Animated poem by Kristin Reiber Harris

When I was a star
Before I was born
I dreamed I was
All things at once
And nothing at all
I saw the oneness of things

 

I am thrilled that I will be able to work with actress/voice talent Vanessa Richardson on this project. She talent has been pivotal in many of my projects. I have also found some great acoustic guitar tracks on Free Music Archive that have great promise.

 I have to mention Lao Tzu. This Chinese philosopher's work (500 BCE) is daily reading and an essential framer of my understanding of how all things are connected and interdependent. The translation I am reading is by Brian Walker, The Unknown Teachings of Lao Tzu: Hua Hu Ching.

I was particularly inspired by Christina Salas, an artist whose work I was introduced to online, reconfirming a direction I had been headed. 

 

       Kristin Reiber Harris, digital     Art for the dream sequencing

 

On a recent visit to the Cooper Hewitt Museum in Manhattan I found a wonderful kids book, We are All Me, written and illustrated by Jordan Crane. This book masterfully tells young children that all humans are connected. The artwork is bright and fanciful. I found it very encouraging that someone had chosen this topic for very young children. My project is designed for families (ie not just for kids). The idea is to make this concept (we're are all in this together) accessible.

Kristin Reiber Harris  Tree of Life

You know trees will be featured, here is one of the Tree of Life series I developed for this project.

My first grant application is due on April 29 and it is keeping me focused on budgets, distribution plans and other aspects of this process someone needs to MAKE me DO!

 Want to be part of the team? Join me as a patron on Patreon and help make this production the best it can be. 

Oak Leaf: A Life Story - The Production Journal

Watching falling leaves is one of my great pleasures in life. Who would have ever guessed something so simple could be so mesmerizing. If I choose to analyse it, I'd say it is the complete abandon with which they "accept" their fate that I find so intriguing. That might suggest that I can tell a happy leaf from one in distress....interesting idea but I can't. I am guessing.

I am pleased to be returning to my LIfe Cycle series of animated short with this current project Oak Leaf: A Life Story. Yes, I did a short about the life cycle of an acorn but this new project is leaf specific. Why?

Pin Oak, gesture 1

I am totally awed by these solar factories that perform such important work in concert with each other. A mature oak tree can have 700,00 leaves and they all work together. Add to that the beauty of their varied shapes and sizes and I want to learn more.

A book and a documentary have energized my interest in the story of the wisdom on Mother Nature, what we can learn and in fact what we must impliment.  Going Circular is an inspiring documentary about the natural world as one living system that has supported itself for millennia until we upset the balance. Nature does not produce waste. Everything is used and reused in a balance we have upset. Nature has no landfills. The book is Douglas W. Tallamy's The Nature of Oaks. I will reference both of these resources often.

PIn Oak, gesture 2

In addition to my research, I am warming up for this project with gesture drawings I will use for my final artwork. 

PIn Oak, gesture 3

Stay with me on this journey and marvel with me as we explore the ingenuity of our living Earth and Mother Nature.

Breathing Easier: An Urban Green Space

First Visit to Green-Wood

I visited Green-Wood Cemetery Friday for the first time. I’m sure I had noticed it on a map of Brooklyn, which I am referencing constantly these days.  However it just didn’t occur to me that it was such an important asset for our community or that I would be so mesmerized by what it has to offer.

The World Health Organization summarizes the benefits of urban green spaces as:

        • Facilitating physical activity and relaxation

        • A refuge from noise

        • Trees that produce oxygen

        • Trees that help filter out harmful air pollution, including airborne particulate matter

An Introduction

Let’s start with the basics. Green-Wood Cemetery was founded in 1838. It is now a National Historic Landmark and accredited arboretum. I was interested to learn it actually predates Central Park in Manhattan. Green-Wood is one of the islands of green space in an ocean of cityscape. Together they form a network for animals, insects and seeds to thrive in this urban environment.

        • 478 acres of mostly open land with 4 bodies of water

        • largest “collection” of mature trees in NYC

        • countless species of birds, insects and small mammals

        • supports honeybees with hives and flowering plant

        • proactive interest in environmental education

Violets Photo Credit: Jörg Hempel