It always seems like we should show the illustrators and authors of children’s books more love. Personally, I credit folks like Dr. Seuss, Eric Carle, Bill Watterson, Maurice Sendak and Shel Silverstein for stretching out my imagination as far as it would go when I was a kid. I suppose what distinguishes the great from good in that category are the books you can flip through fifteen or twenty years later and still be blown away by their creativity or their power to convey complex ideas in deceptively simple ways.
Whether or not it’s intended as a children’s book, in the traditional sense of the word, Rop van Mierlo‘s wordless Wild Animals collection has that same sort of classic feel and elegant simplicity to it. Billed by van Mierlo as “a wild book for civilized people” and “a sophisticated book for wild people”, Wild Animals is a collection of gorgeous watercolors, done in a playful, gestural style that almost recalls Rorschach inkblots. Aside from that, the award-winning work is self-published, and now in its second printing. Read on for a closer look inside, or cop here.
Sometimes it takes a video like this to remind us how little we know. We humans think we’re so superior, the masters of our domains some would say. But if you put us in the ocean, what would happen? Wrap City Records. That’s why I’ve got love for all the sea creatures out there. The starfish out there shining. The sea otters holding it down. And the mimic octopus, one of the ocean’s greatest magicians. Able to alter its appearance to mimic other animals depending on the situation, it’s hard not to write off the octopus’ abilities as just plain magic. Or maybe that’s evolution.
A couple months back we featured the photography of Armenian photographer Suren Manvelyan. Taking macro shots of human eyes her images related the complex makeup of this vital body part. Recently, Suren has been at it again, although this time with Animal Eyes. Photographing the eyes of horses, dogs and hyena to name a few, Suren’s new collection of photographs showcase the diversity of eyes that represent the animal kingdom.
I’m not always sure what to make of animals in captivity. On one hand, there are some obvious reasons to be conflicted about commodifying and organizing nature for our own purposes. On the other hand, it has its perks. Speaking from personal experience, I know having firsthand access to the wonders of the world at places like the Oakland Zoo or the Monterrey Bay Aquarium had to have an impact on my imagination as a kid. Tiny Oceans, a photo essay by photographer and graphic designer Ashley Oostdyck captures that phenomenon taking place, while also offering an objective, yet original perspective on one of our culture’s more peculiar institutions.
Where do we draw the line between human and animal? For anyone who’s ever felt they connected, communicated with, or understood a pet or another animal, it’s a question you’ve probably explored before. For Nim Chimpsky, exploring the complexities of that question shaped every aspect of his life. Originally conceived by Columbia professor Herbert S. Terrace in 1973, Project Nim placed Nim, a chimpanzee, in a human family, raising him in many ways as a child, in an attempt to refute linguistics expert Noam Chomsky’s theory that language was inherent only to humans.
Project Nim, released just a few weeks ago in select theaters traces the story of Nim, his family, and the pseudo-scientific research that came to characterize the study as a whole. That Nim had an lasting, immense emotional impact on the people around him makes his story powerful. The impact the study had on Nim, on the other hand, make his story disturbing, a testament to the limits of scientific inquiry, or simply a cautionary tale about the implications of truly delving into such a complex question. Either way, this is looking like a must see. Hit MORE if you need more convincing though.
Jellyfish Lake is located on Eli Malk island in the Republic of Palau. Twelve thousand years ago these jellyfish became trapped in a natural basin on the island when the ocean receded. With no predators amongst them for thousands of years, they evolved into a new species that lost most of their stinging ability as they no longer had to protect themselves. They are pretty much harmless to humans although some people with very sensitive skin may get a minor sting from them. If you are allergic to jellyfish you should wear a wetsuit or protective clothing.
These fascinating creatures survive by sharing a symbiotic relationship with algae that live inside of them. At night, the jellyfish go down to the depths of the lake where the algae feed on nutrients. During the day, the jellyfish come back to the surface and follow the sun across the lake in a massive migration. The algae convert the energy of the sun via photosynthesis into a sugar that feeds the jellyfish.
Living in the wild is so life or death. Us humans have created such a peaceful existence comparatively. It’s like “Damn, I might die trying to eat lunch today?” Or “Damn, I’m bout to get stung by 100 bees to get my favorite snack?” For the honey badger it seems as though life is full of perilous traps as acquiring a meal might mean fending off hyenas and wild boar. That is until the honey badger meets the honey guide, and the rest is history.
If you’ve ever burned one, or gone to the beach with me you know that my fascination with the deep sea continues to grow. You ever just look out at the ocean and just wonder what’s really poppin under there? I had the opportunity to go snorkeling a few weeks back, and it literally felt like I was in another world. Maybe Lisie can attest to the feeling. So when I came across the photography of Alexander Semenov, his images confirmed what my mind had always pondered. Capturing stills of the deep oceans most vibrant personalities, Semenov’s photos showcase some of our planets most spectacular underwater creatures.
Not very long ago, I found a black widow living in my bicycle wheel, and she was beautiful. But I thought…’A bicycle wheel is no place for a spider’ so I coaxed the Widow onto a twig and set her free in the bushes to find a home. A home where she can drink tea and eat cinnabons without getting dizzy from all the spinning of my 70-year-old flat tire…
This video just kind of puts all of my “heroic achievements” into perspective a bit. Like, “You ain’t that tight, Max..” Maybe, probably, it’s the same for you. Culture’s such a trip. The way people live, or perhaps more accurately the way people survive, is so fascinating. Can you even imagine? You and two friends running up on 15 fucking lions? While they’re eating? I think I’m doing a lot trying to emphasize the magnitude of this video with these italics, but you get the point. The world is amazing. I wonder how the camera man felt.
“While working with Watching Humans Watching, which deals with the human relationship to nature as the great unknown, we started thinking about our own mystification with nature. Stirred by tales and myths of the supernatural wild, we began experimenting with make-believe wilderness and strove to make our own imaginative world. Our photographs in the SAGA can be seen as small building stones: sets, scenes, props and characters from an unwritten story. A mood board for anyone creating a fairytale.”
“Cheetahs bring down quarry either by tripping it or knocking it off balance with a sideward or downward blow to its hindquarters. Prey that are slow or standing are often pulled down by rearing and hooking its shoulder or flank with a dewclaw and yanking backward. Once the victim is down, the cat lunges for its throat, secures a vice like grip on its windpipe, and proceeds to choke it to death, usually within 4 to 5 minutes. A cheetah then drags its kill into the nearest cover, where it proceeds to eat up to 30 lb. (14 kg), meanwhile keeping a lookout for hyenas and lions. Skin and bones and digestive tract are left uneaten; cheetahs do not return to their kills.”
I feel like as humans we oftentimes disregard the abilities of animals. Aside from their ability to survive and evolve on earth over thousands of years, animals do pretty dope things in general. Which leads us to our next guest, the Lyrebird. Able to imitate the sounds of their surrounding environments, from bird calls to car horns, the Lyrebird’s ability to mimic its environment sets it apart as one of the more extraordinary animals to come across Wine & Bowties. But don’t thank me, thank Dusky for the introduction. I can’t wait to see one of these in person. We’ll let the Lyrebird take it from here.
What is human nature? What do we even mean when we say something like “common humanity”? If I can take a kind of existential stab at that impossibly complicated question, I’d say more than anything, we are what we do. In that respect, I suppose you could say the mark of humanity is diversity. In what we create, the stories we tell, the values we hold, or in how we live our lives every day. Through the process of evolving in every remote corner of the planet, we’ve come up with some strange ways of adapting.
Human Planet, which premiered just recently on BBC One, is a unique look at our own species, and that vast diversity of different ways in which we’ve come to live on Earth. Aside from that, it’s a look at how we’ve come to live with Earth, and how the human species, unlike most, have come to inhabit such a variety of different natural environments. Taking real footage of human societies in a number of cultural or natural extremes, Human Planet looks like an experience, to say the least.
