In high school, his passions were art and the environment. He wanted to go to art school after he graduated, but his parents convinced him to attend college.

“You can study environmental sciences,” his father said. “It will provide job security.”

When he scowled, his mother added, “and contribute to your ambition to depict environmental degradation through your paintings.”

He went along with his parents’ wishes. By second year, he was spending all his time and effort on outside art classes. He dropped out of university and devoted himself to his art. He might not make much money, but it was a better choice. He’d be happier.

He developed a routine; early morning beach walks followed by hours painting landscapes that depicted environmental degradation. On his walks, he often stopped and talked to an old university professor who was making daily measurements of biological conditions.

“Long-term record of the changes,” she said, “is the only way to prove we’re seeing environmental degradation.”

He smiled, but said nothing as he watched her process her samples. Over the following months, he often helped with her sampling efforts. As the old biologist became frailer, he did more of the work. When she became too frail to walk to the beach, he began collecting the samples, making the measurements, and submitting the results to the university.

For years, no one acknowledged his efforts, but he kept submitting his results. Then a new professor discovered the fifty-year-long dataset. She invited him to the climate change symposium she organized.

He arrived, hoping they’d offer him a few minutes to discuss digital photos of his paintings. They were his record of the environmental deterioration he’d observed over thirty years as a landscape artist.

They offered him much more. During the lunch they put on for all participants, the university president stood and praised his efforts. He conferred an honorary degree on our artist. In the afternoon, they offered him an hour to describe his work.

One student summed it up beautifully. “Wow! One picture is definitely worth a thousand data points.”

5 1 vote
Post Rating
9 Comments
Oldest
Newest Most Voted
Inline Feedbacks
View all comments
Julie Harris
Julie Harris(@julie-harris)
1 year ago

Alan, I deeply appreciated this story. I do believe that the role of the artist in our collective challenges is one that has often been ignored. And yet, it has often been the artists that have drawn attention to problems. It’s what many of us are trying to do on this site – use our writing skills to increase awareness. Fiction is a great medium, as are the visual arts. I love… Read more »

Christer Norrlof
Christer Norrlof(@christer-norrlof)
1 year ago

A great story, Alan, and I was happy to see that Julie asked what I wanted to know: how did you find the painting? Thanks for including the link. It’s a wonderful video and I admire both Craig’s paintings and Ehren McPhee’s recording and editing. So both you and your brother have these combined interests/talents in nature and environmental work as well as artistic creation. Both of you are contributing to a… Read more »

Lotchie Carmelo
Lotchie Carmelo(@lotchie-carmelo)
2 months ago

Great story, Allan. I feel so sad to read it just now. My late discovery is the reason why I didn’t send my vote for this awesome story. Anyway, please allow me to express my congratulations that your story has been featured in the new contest. Well done. I wish to read new stories from you soon.

Lotchie Carmelo
Lotchie Carmelo(@lotchie-carmelo)
Reply to  Alan Kemister
2 months ago

I am too excited to read your new stories. I hope to read and enjoy it soon. Good luck, Alan.

Last edited 2 months ago by Lotchie Carmelo
Fuji
Fuji(@fuji)
2 months ago

Alan, I just read this story from two years ago and was very inspired. Just like your visual artist, we writers are recording history, from year to year. Our stories can help keep people aware of the horrors of climate change, even when we write with compassion and caring. I hope that more writers join us in this current Earth Day experience, and help get the word out to everyone we know… Read more »

Recent Comments

9
0
Selected Authors may submit comments (5 Credits)x
()
x
Scroll to Top

Sharing a Post

Why do my friends need to SignIn to read the post I shared?

Actually, this is a voting security feature. During public voting, only club members can read posts submitted for that contest. Since anyone reading the story is able to vote (click the Like button), we reserve these capabilities to members who SignIn. Before we implemented this security feature, people were voting multiple times and making the public voting process unfair and out of balance. To fix this, our staff finally decided to allow only members who SignIn to read the stories. Membership is free and easy, and ensures our club is safe, secure, and family-friendly!