Nature’s Inspiration
By Luciana Laidlaw ’26
LAS 410: Ecotones
In this project, Lucy orchestrates a collage of her videos over time that resonates with themes in our LAS 410 Ecotones course. In addition, we appreciate her artist’s statement, which interweaves the visual vignettes with intertextual music to demonstrate connections to Thoreau’s Walden and perspectives of beauty where “profound experiences often come from places of familiarity.” We also appreciate her integrating herself in the video as part of nature.
– Dr. Mary Stark and Prof. Beth McMahon
Artist’s Statement for “Nature’s Inspiration”
For my final pursuit, I chose to create a video that compiles several clips of nature I have captured over the course of several years. I’ve always found fascination in the small, often overlooked details of nature, and crafting this video allowed me to view those moments from a new perspective. Each video clip in this compilation was taken between the years of 2018 and 2022, spanning all the way through my high school years and reflects on the evolution of how I view and appreciate nature.
My inspiration for this video came from our discussions in class on Henry David Thoreau’s book, “Walden.” In this book, Thoreau shares a powerful message of slowing down and observing the world around us more closely, allowing us to find beauty and meaning in the simple moments. He describes the value of simplicity and mindful attention to the natural world, which is reflected meaningfully through the scenes in this video. Creating this compilation helped me appreciate the beauty in nature’s finest details, while also helping me understand the self-awareness and connection to nature that we explored in our discussions of the text.
What makes this video so special is that nearly every single clip was taken right here in Pella, with over half being captured right outside my own home. This is a beautiful example of how meaningful and inspiring moments in nature exist all around us. Beauty can be found in every single place on Earth if we take the time to notice it. As Thoreau reminds us in “Walden,” profound experiences often come from places of familiarity.
Underneath my video, I have used the songs “Arrival of the Birds” and “Transformation” by the Cinematic Orchestra. These songs come from Disney’s nature film The Crimson Wing: Mystery of the Flamingos. The song “Arrival of the Birds” is used to accompany the moment when a large flock of flamingos land at a new lake, and the music helps create a sense of wonder and beauty for that moment. I use “Arrival of the Birds” to accompany my earliest clips of nature that inspired my original desire to create this video. “Transformation” occurs later in the film and acts as a reprise of “Arrival of the Birds.” This song is used when the film details the harsh experiences the flamingos must face in their environment, and how they are able to overcome them. In my video, “Transformation” begins with the clips of snow-covered branches, emphasizing the transformation of the seasons. Both of these songs helped me echo the wonder and awe-inspiring moments of the flamingos in my own moments of nature.
In this video, twenty-two clips were taken in Pella, Iowa; five were taken in Estes Park, Colorado; three were taken in Pleasantville, Iowa; two were taken in Newcastle, England; and one was taken in New York City, New York. The significance of so many clips being taken from the place I call home once again highlights Thoreau’s theme of finding beauty in the places and moments of our everyday lives. The inclusion of the clip of New York City’s skyline from New York Harbour may seem out of place in a nature video, but it has a very specific meaning. It symbolizes a moment of silence in a typically chaotic environment, capturing the scene from the water’s peaceful vantage point. Even in a place known for its liveliness and noise, moments of quiet connection to the natural world can still be found.
My hope is that this project inspires others to slow down and appreciate the beauty that surrounds them each and every day, no matter how ordinary these moments may seem. As Franz Kafka states, “Anyone who keeps the ability to see beauty never grows old.”