Divine the Earth 1994

My uncle was a diviner in the Quebec village where I spent my early childhood. This talent of pulling information up from the earth is one that I have inherited and on occasion I have found good well locations for friends and others. The title of this installation, Divine the Earth, can be taken quite literally. The inspiration for the divination comes from my exploration of a special place for me in the Yukon. This locale speaks through materials borrowed from the heart of the area; tree skeletons worn by weather and wind, and sand left by a river meandering over the millennia. A sound-path “Earthsong”, created for this piece by Canadian musician/composer Daniel Janke, follows the cycle of daytime to night time and includes the sound of the wind playing the strings of a musical instrument, the kora, the music of the birds and of the river itself.