Serenity in the Garden

Alexander Calder was a famous  artist that used shapes that are 'biomorphic'.  They recall shapes found in nature such as leaves, flowers, clouds. Shadbush leaves in Autumn - Calder's inspiration? Calder's other interests included physics, astronomy and kinetics.  He was inspired by color and composition and Piet Mondrian's paintings. by Piet  Mondrian, this incorporates Phi proportion In some of Calder's signature hanging mobiles, he arranged colorful natural shapes in a mathematical pattern found in Nature called the Fibonacci sequence which is based on the proportion known as PHI (1:1.618). In the Calder mobile below, called, 'Back, White and Ten Red' , the shapes are arranged in the Fibonacci sequence, 1, 1, 2, 3, 5.....(each number is the sum of the two preceding it).  Perhaps he got this idea from Mondrian who also used Phi in his famous artworks. Fibonacci sequence in Calder's  'Black, White and Ten ...

Kim Wilkie is, hands down, my favorite living landscape designer. He is a genius. The Orpheus landform by Kim Wilkie - click here for  photo source   He is from England and is known for expansive land sculpting projects - sinuous waterways that meander through pastoral countrysides, stepped hillsides that sometimes double as grassed amphitheaters, and mounds with paths that spiral to the top.  Wilkie was the speaker yesterday at the New York Botanical Garden's 14th Annual Winter Lecture Series. This thought provoking series features exceptional speakers that  share their insights on "the emotional value of designing gardens that reflect personal passions and aspirations."   How could I not go to something described like that? I am a partial to the  anything  to do with 'the emotional value of  designing  gardens.' Kim Wilkie and dogs       source- Telegraph article  And anyway, when I saw it wa...

  The Fibonacci series of numbers is at the heart of Nature.... The Fibonacci Sequence is a simple series of numbers: 0, 1, 1, 2, 3, 5, 8, 13, 21, 34, ... The next number is found by adding up the two numbers before it.   The 2 is found by adding the two numbers before it (1+1) Similarly, the 3 is found by adding the two numbers before it (1+2), And the 5 is (2+3), and so on! Example: the next number in the sequence above would be 21+34 = 55 It is that simple! Here is a longer list: 0, 1, 1, 2, 3, 5, 8, 13, 21, 34, 55, 89, 144, 233, 377, 610, 987, 1597, 2584, 4181, 6765, 10946, 17711, 28657, 46368, 75025, 121393, 196418, 317811, ... If you multiply a fibonacci number by 1.618 you will get the next in the series. This proportion of 1.618 is known as PHI. I teach this to my classes...everything is in a fibonacci number like 3 or 5...see this apple core? or this passionflower? or this shell?     bu...