Day 31 – Earthseed and Space for art
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| Photo by The New York Public Library |
So, those of you who know me know I’m a big reader… I love to read – mostly fiction, but also (auto)biography, books about writing, memoir, history, cultural studies, nature writing, and contemporary nonfiction. I’m currently re-reading Parable of the Sower, by Octavia Butler.
If you’re not familiar with Octavia Butler’s work – check it out. I think Kindred was the first novel of hers I read. I’m also a VERY big fan of her collection of short stories and essays, called Bloodchild and other stories. She has an essay there on writing for publication Furor Scribendi which I go back to often. Her advice, “Persist!” Many people have written about her inspiration. She is a sci-fi, Afro-futurist, feminist author whose ideas and characters stay with you!! I’ve found Parable of the Sower the perfect work to accompany my reading of Care work.
Parable of the Sower is a dystopian novel about a future set in the 2020s. Here’s what her website says:
When global climate change and economic crises lead to social chaos in the early 2020s, California becomes full of dangers, from pervasive water shortage to masses of vagabonds who will do anything to live to see another day. Fifteen-year-old Lauren Olamina lives inside a gated community with her preacher father, family, and neighbors, sheltered from the surrounding anarchy. In a society where any vulnerability is a risk, she suffers from hyperempathy, a debilitating sensitivity to others’ emotions.
Precocious and clear-eyed, Lauren must make her voice heard in order to protect her loved ones from the imminent disasters her small community stubbornly ignores. But what begins as a fight for survival soon leads to something much more: the birth of a new faith . . . and a startling vision of human destiny.
I also am a big audiobook fan, and so I belong to Audible (no shout outs to Amazon… I’m really trying to wean myself from the Evil Empire. I also belong to Libro FM. So, buy this on Libro FM if you want it, or better yet take it out of your local library). The book of the day is a memoir/essay by Astronaut Nicole Stott called Back to Earth: What Life in Space Taught Me About Our Home Planet - and Our Mission to Protect It. (This is why I stay with Audible… they introduce me to stuff I wouldn’t ordinarily know about or get exposed to!!)
Anyway, today’s selection seems so serendipitous – not only because I’m reading about the importance of recognizing our interconnectedness in Butler’s work and Piepzna-Samarasinha’s work, but because Stott is an artist-astronaut!!! No reason these wouldn’t go together, but the sciences and the arts are so often kept apart.
When I wandered to her website I discovered that she has started a foundation called Space for Art:
Combining her artwork and spaceflight experience, Nicole is actively working to generate widespread interest in the inspiration that comes so wonderfully through the integration of Art and Science. #SciArt
On her post-NASA mission, she is a co-founder of the Space for Art Foundation #Space #Art #Healing
There are two projects highlighted on her website:
A non-profit 501(c)3 organization, The Space for Art Foundation is uniting a planetary community of children through the awe and wonder of space exploration and the healing power of art.
The Space for Art Foundation is the home of The Spacesuit Art Project, Postcards to Space, the Space for Art Exhibits, and more!
A beautiful mission of Space, Art,
& Healing
A wonderful global project that began with the children participating in the
Arts in Medicine program at The University of Texas MD Anderson Children’s
Cancer Hospital and has grown now in cooperation with children at hospitals and
in refugee centers all over the world. Brought to life through the
artistic genius of Ian Cion and ILC Dover spacesuit company.
What?! Space, art, and healing!!! I love that the work of arts and healing has found its way into the science community like this. Check out the video showing the project done as a collaboration between NASA and The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, facilitated by the Program Director of the Arts in Medicine program at UTMD Anderson Cancer Center, Ian Cion.
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