“Among Giants” @ SD Natural History Museum + “The Cove”
I was not sure how interesting a bunch of whale pictures and sculptures would be, but I came to thoroughly enjoy the exhibit “Among Giants” at the San Diego Natural History Museum. The exhibit consisted of photographs from Charles “Flip” Nicklin and a couple other photographers and some sculptures by Randy Puckett. The first thing that impressed me about Nicklin’s photographs was the timing. He had huge moving subjects, but he got them at just the right moments whether they were swimming past the camera or breeching out of the ocean. The other thing I appreciated in his work was the variety. He had rather “classic” whale pictures, but he also had more abstract images and views I had never really seen before. Some of the pictures were very real and clear, showing the whole whale or at least a good portion of it. Others were more abstract showing just parts of the animals and lots of aquatic lighting effects.
I appreciated Nicklin’s use of the environment and portrayal of his subjects. Sometimes, the underside of the water became the “sky” and the underwater space became “ground” with the line between the two as the “horizon.” I liked the way the whales’ curves with their bodies and flippers filled the frame, creating movement in the static image and leading the eye over the subject and around the picture. Nicklin did an amazing job of capturing the whales’ faces in some of his photos. Some actually appeared to be looking right at the camera, and thus at the viewer. This led to some of the fun names he gave his pieces such as “Friendly Face” and “Stern Face.” With all the unique photographs displayed, I could tell that Nicklin’s being in the water with his subjects was very important, enabling him to take personal, close-up shots as well as distinctive pictures.
One of my favorite photographs at the exhibit was “Blue.” It was an aerial view of a blue whale showing the whole body from tail to head across the picture left to right, and the whale was centered vertically. The image was a solid dark color all around except for the pale blue whale and some white bubbles in its wake. The bubbles were in strands as if they had fallen off the whale or as if it had broken free from them. This somewhat abstract image showed the blue whale’s powerful motion in a poetic, peaceful way. Photos like Charles Nicklin’s “Blue” helped make the whales and the exhibit much more interesting than I had expected.
I also have to say a little bit about the sculptures of Randy Puckett that were placed throughout the gallery. Pictures online are not sufficient for them, and they are much better in person. They have a nice wooden base with waves fashioned out of bronze. Attached to the “water” is a sculpted whale or dolphin which has this incredible texture that resembles polished stone but also gives the appearance of light cast through the water’s surface onto the mammal’s skin. The undersides of the flippers look like polished brass. Many of his sculptures involve several whale replicas carefully “stacked” so they look as if they are swimming around each other in space. The shapes of the animals are very realistic, and he even includes little barnacles on some of the whales. Puckett’s sculptures were an excellent addition to Nicklin’s photographs and helped to create an experience of being “Among Giants.”
After seeing the exhibition, I also watched The Cove, a documentary film about dolphins being killed in Japan for their meat, and I learned that dolphins are classified with whales as cetaceans. I was somewhat surprised that so many dolphins are killed for food, but this activity made some sense after I heard more about whaling restrictions. It also became understandable when the filmmakers said that dolphin meat is often sold deceptively as more desirable whale meat and thus at higher prices than it would otherwise merit. This situation helped to explain why the fishermen were so adamant about keeping visitors away from their work site, even being quite angry and rude towards them. The filmmakers may not understand everything about the fishermen and their business, but there is something wrong with it. The killing method for the animals should not be detrimental to such large groups of dolphins, and meat contaminated with large amounts of mercury should certainly not be distributed for consumption. I do not share the filmmakers’ emotional connection to dolphins and whales, but I do believe that people should use natural resources wisely and be conservative in harvesting seafood or any other kind of animal. Although I was bothered at times by their apparent exaggeration of the animals’ significance as personal and intelligent beings, I admired the filmmakers’ bravery and dedication in exposing dishonesty and corruption in the dolphin business and their concern for the impact of mercury-laden meats.
digifotobook by Zachary Chione 