ARTHOUSE GALLERY GROUP SHOW
Dark Sky Park Approaching Nowhere, 2022
oil on French polyester canvas
193 x 203 cm, 195.5 x 205.5 cm (framed)
Sold
It has recently become necessary to establish ‘Dark Sky Parks’ as conservation reserves, reclaiming the night sky to be visible from earth and to reduce light pollution. The increasing number...
It has recently become necessary to establish ‘Dark Sky Parks’ as conservation reserves, reclaiming the night sky to be visible from earth and to reduce light pollution. The increasing number of satellites and terrestrial material crowding our atmosphere blinds us to constellations. A Dark Sky Park is publicly or privately-owned land possessing an exceptional or distinguished quality of starry nights and a nocturnal environment that is specifically protected for its scientific, natural and cultural heritage. Reclaiming the dark, natural night skies is vital to animals, plants and humans who need a regular interval of light and dark to know when to eat, sleep, hunt, migrate and reproduce. Humans have always been ‘star gazers’, indigenous people have relied on the night sky, its infinite variety and weather, to read the seasonal rhythms and changes, to navigate, find meaning and to guide their lives. Light pollution from terrestrial sources interferes with astronomical observation and discoveries, to the meanings we find in constellations, planets and stars, to our astrologies, myths and legends. Without that dance from the infinite, coloured, heavenly bodies we lose our ability to dream and of finding our place in the universe. Without the magic of a celestial sky, our imagination, creativity and the joy of the canopy of wonder will be lost to us. The necessity of natural darkness is in its illuminating and revelatory nature.