If you look hard, and think, the picture I am pasting at right may seem familiar — reminiscent, even, of a painting. It is, rather, a living wall erected outside the National Gallery in London — made of more than 8,000 plants of 26 varieties. It was erected out of the NG’s concern for the environment, an attempt to reduce its carbon footprint.
It is, of course, supposed to be van Gogh’s Wheatfield, With Cypresses, painted in 1889 — the version owned by the National Gallery, pictured below.
The plant picture is on view in Trafalgar Square, to the west of the National Gallery, now through October. It will, through the seasons, grow and change, of course (though I don’t know whether or when the sky will turn blue).
The ecopicture was made with the help of General Electric, which has a business it calls ‘ecomagination.’ You can learn more about that here, and through the National Gallery’s press release.
How much good the picture is going to the environment was left unsaid — perhaps it is uncalculable.
But it’s a show — probably useful as an attention-getter both for climate change, art and, of course, GE.
Photo Credits: Courtesy of GE and the National Gallery