In Spirit Invertebrate
- Mar 13, 2021
- 2 min read
“To the eyes of the man of imagination, nature is imagination itself.” – William Blake
Human imagination and the fantastic variety of forms in the natural world come from the same source, I believe – they are both the unfolding of an ineffable life force. And they behave with similar dynamics too.
Take for instance the ‘edge effect’, as it is known in ecology: the boundary between two habitats, such as woodland and field, has a greater biodiversity than either of the habitats individually. Life thrives at that intersection, and this is paralleled in the meeting of human cultures, where we see a cross-pollination of ideas and the emergence of new perspectives and forms of expression.
‘Worker 11’ (left) and ‘Worker 4’ (right) from In Spirit Invertebrate series
Also, just as a biodiverse habitat is more resilient than a monoculture – it is less susceptible to disease – a way of human life that embraces different cultures and celebrates the human imagination in all its manifestations not only makes for a more colourful and rich experience but also builds resilience through perspective, which makes us more adaptable.
There is even a degree of interdependence between nature’s variety and the human imagination. Observation of the natural world fires the imagination, and by embracing an imaginative approach to living we create space for a range of natural environments. Conversely, a narrow-minded pursuit of monocultures is detrimental; in agriculture, for example, it contributes to the extinction of species by eliminating environmental niches, and culturally it makes life monotonous by reducing a chorus of voices to just a few (in quite a literal sense too, since we are seeing the death of so many of the world’s languages and dialects – National Geographic Explorer Wade Davis gives a fascinating TED talk that touches upon this).
Worker 13′ (left) and ‘Worker 17’ (right) from In Spirit Invertebrate series
Taking inspiration from the natural world, I’ve created a host of imaginary invertebrates, almost in an effort to create some new species that can replace those we have lost in the ongoing extinction.
So this series – In Spirit Invertebrate – is an ode to diversity, a call to dare to be more imaginative, and a tribute to all the species that no longer exist.
View the full series so far at www.thomasallen.uk.com
Worker 23′ (left) and ‘Worker 6’ (right) from In Spirit Invertebrate series
(Hero image: amalgamation of ‘Worker 5’ and ‘Worker 10’ from In Spirit Invertebrate series)
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