Photography by Jean-Jacques @ Gypsy Café.
Hogsback
“Hogsback is a magical world of mountains and forests. It is situated high up on the Amathole mountains of the Eastern Cape Province of South Africa, and is surrounded by centuries-old indigenous Afro-montane forests.”
Quoted from: http://www.hogsback.co.za/
Hogsback in a Nutshell – Read More
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For more information please visit: http://www.ecoshrine.co.za/
The Eco-Shrine at Hogsback
“I created this art work in 1995 and 1996 because I felt the need to give artistic expression to the scientific facts regarding the origin of Earth and all of life on Earth. I wanted to help people to understand the fundamental ecological truth of the interconnectedness and interdependence of all living creatures.
I felt deeply concerned about the unrealistic, human-centred attitude of our current global culture, and feared the dire consequences for all species including humans. [See Club of Rome and Limits to Growth, and the ongoing ‘6th Great Extinction of species.’] The bricklayer, Dagamnyama Wara and I started building in 1995 and the Shrine was opened to the public in 1996.
The architecture, sculpture, mosaics and paintings are my spontaneous reaction to the scientific story of our origins. The cement relief depicts aspects of the fossil record of the evolution of life. The mosaics are a compilation of trance-images made by the Bushmen/San artists together with images of the cosmos from the Hubble space telescope. I think that ecological wisdom and modern science and technology hold they key for a sustainable future. The Shrine attracts thousands of visitors from all over the world and is also a venue for meditations, retreats, eco-literacy workshops, eco-art tours and occasionally concerts and wedding ceremonies are held here.
The Eco-Shrine is not attached to any particular religious faith. I expect viewers to interpret the art works from their own philosophic or religious and spiritual viewpoints. My studio is open to the public.“
– Diana Graham, Hogsback, South Africa
(Text provided by the artist – October 2014)
Read more about the Eco-Shrine
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Ecopsychology
“Freud coined the term reality principle to designate that objective order of things to which the healthy psyche must adapt if it is to qualify as “sane.” Writing in a pre-ecological era, he failed to include the biosphere. Ecopsychology rectifies that failure by expanding the definition of sanity to embrace the love for the living planet that is reborn in every child.” – Theodore Roszak
Quoted from: www.ecobuddhism.org
Read more about Theodore Roszak at Ecological Buddhism
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The Voice of the Earth
“Facts and figures, reason and logic can show us the errors of our present ways; they can delineate the risks we run. But they cannot motivate, they cannot teach us a better way to live, a better way to want to live. That must be born from inside our own convictions. And that birth may have to be a painful one.” – Theodore Roszak
Quoted from the book, The Voice of the Earth, Page 47.
Read more about The Voice of the Earth
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Ecology, Place & the Awakening of Compassion
“All of us can be as placed and grounded as a willow tree among the streams—and also as free and fluid in the life of the whole planet as the water in the water cycle that passes through all forms and positions roughly every two million years. Our finite bodies and inevitable membership in cultures and regions must be taken as a valuable and positive condition of existence. Mind is fluid, nature is porous, and both biologically and culturally we are always fully part of the whole.” – Gary Snyder
Quoted from: www.ecobuddhism.org
Read more about Gary Snyder at Ecological Buddhism
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Building the New World Within
There are major challenges ahead. A fast-changing external environment will soon make any approach other than a responsible approach impractical, outdated and illogical. The less prepared we are for becoming responsible, the more difficult it will be to adapt to living responsibly when we are forced to do so. To survive collectively we need to collectively progress from freedom devoid of responsibility to freedom derived from responsibility.
Read more – Building the New World Within (Part 5) – July 12 2014
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All photographs taken in October 2014 by Jean-Jacques M.
Eco-Shrine text provided by Diana Graham
Quotes selected by Jean-Jacques M.
Copyright © 2015 – All Rights Reserved – Gypsycafe.org
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2 Comments
This is beautiful and awesome that the mosaics were created in part by visions from Spirit. in lak’ech, Debra
I fully agree, Debra. Diana was certainly inspired by spirit and she lives in an amazing setting in nature, which must be very conducive for her art. The Eco-shrine is very inspiring and also a good place to reflect on our relationship with the earth. I’m very glad I made the effort to travel to Hogsback (which is quite remote) to visit in person. I hope it will inspire others to visit and support Diana’s work.