wwp@yahoogroups.com:
Re: the next theme
Bernhard Vogl 2004-Aug-12 19:10:00
Just my 2 Cent: A _very_ difficult theme for a panoramic image! Which
makes it very interesting ;-)
Best regards
Bernhard
G. Donald Bain wrote:
>As you may have noticed I have been in and out of contact a lot in
>recent weeks, participating in discussions some days, then
>disappearing. Landis is on the road continuously for a while now, so we
>hear from him also only intermittently.
>
>But it is time to move on - the Equinox is only six weeks away. A
>theme needs to be determined so we can organize our lives around this
>event!
>
>There have been many good suggestions, and we have at least a couple of
>years of excellent themes to work on.
>
>My concern right now is to be as inclusive as possible - we need to
>keep building the base of participants. We don't want a theme that will
>be a problem for anyone, or too difficult. This is certainly a
>challenge, considering the range of cultures, climates, and
>personalities we have to work with.
>
>Here's my proposal:
>
>BRIDGES -- A World Wide Panorama -- September 18-22, 2004
>
>Every place on earth has bridges, from heroic suspension spans to
>graceful arches over the canals of Venice. There are scary swinging
>bridges, busy bridges over urban rivers, high arched bridges in
>Japanese gardens, picturesque covered bridges in the countryside,
>bridges that open for shipping, floating bridges, Roman bridges still
>in use, ancient bridges in China.
>
>Bridges are interesting, in their engineering, their materials, their
>setting, their history. They are important, providing vital access
>across rivers and to islands. Some carry huge volumes of traffic,
>others cross international boundaries. Bridges can be short but
>complicated, the soaring loops of a freeway interchange, or immensely
>long like the causeway connecting the Florida Keys. Some cross deep
>narrow gorges in the mountains, others span turbulent tidal channels.
>They can be symbolic, like a Chinese nine-turn bridge, or strictly
>utilitarian, like the ubiquitous Bailey bridges.
>
>Bridges can be beautiful, in and of themselves. From the classic spans
>of ancient times, to the bravado of the industrial revolution, to
>dramatic new shapes by Santiago Calatrava. Bridges sometimes provide
>the grace-note to a dramatic scene, the focal point of a landscape.
>Bridges over lakes and streams in gardens and parks are often works of
>art, carefully designed for visual effect as well as utility.
>
>Many bridges are famous: the Golden Gate Bridge, Brooklyn Bridge,
>London Bridge (in Arizona) and Tower Bridge (still in London), the
>Bridge of Sighs in Venice, Sydney Harbor Bridge, the Eads Bridge over
>the Mississippi, the new bridges over the Inland Sea in Japan, the
>Tagus River Bridge in Lisbon, the Firth of Forth bridges in Scotland.
>
>Taken metaphorically, bridges can be anything that helps us to progress
>>from one place to another, spanning barriers and obstacles. There are
>social and cultural bridges, economic and business bridges, emotional
>and psychological bridges.
>
>So, I think we can all find something exciting to contribute on the
>theme of BRIDGES.
>
>More information later.
>
> Don
>----------
>G. Donald Bain
>Director, Geography Computing Facility
>University of California, Berkeley
>
>