December 9, 2005

Spirit Dor

By John Richards [Click on each photo for a larger view in a pop-up window.]

"There is nothing Supernatural, just laws of physics not fully understood.

The intent of my work is to bridge a gap, to create a transition point of sorts. Inspired by a type of morphic resonance, I make designs on the ground, earthshapes, which are coherent and symmetrical, usually consisting of circles arranged in a pattern. The dimensions are not exact, nor are they derived from any sort of archaic codes, ancient measurement standards, or cryptic formulae. They are laid out with what feels instinctively correct at the time.

The photos in this article were taken in my backyard after the creation of Spirit Dor II. Spirit Dor I will be documented in the future. To the best of my knowledge, there has never been any type of cemetery or “burial ground” on the plot of land where I have made these works.

Background
By trade I am an electronics technician specializing in radar systems and test equipment. My professional background has been in radio communications, wave propagation, resonant frequencies, wavelengths, antenna theory, and transmitting/receiving systems. My personal background is drawing, artwork, wooden sculpture, wilderness studies, and a sort of shamanistic/Wiccan approach to life, balanced with an interest in astronomy, mathematics, and hard science.

I grew up in Wisconsin and spent much of my time in the forest and fields behind our house. I would range the woods for hours, passing amongst the tamarack and birch, cornfields, kettles, and moraines, and spotting the occasional white tail deer or owl. Sometimes spending the night by a solitary campfire, I would absorb the essence of the surroundings. I made some of my first stick shelters during this time. 

In the hills north of Sun Valley, Nevada, I have made quite a few solitary works, nothing more than a mound of dirt with a stick or feather set on top, sometimes connecting two mounds with a line of stones. Performing a derivative of the ha rite, I would appeal to the inner selves and acknowledge the wind swept sagebrush desert around me. It was here that I made my first organized circular arrangement on a larger scale. 

A hut shelter made of juniper and sage was the focal point of a standing stone arrangement. A 1-meter menhir was the center of a stone circle, with two smaller menhirs marking the sunrise on the summer and winter solstice.

In North Carolina I made a similar hut and stone arrangement, this time adding a carved wooden spirit pole. I also created a few elongated earthen shapes in the Rocky Mountains, not far from Colorado Springs

Spirit Dor I
I work only with hand tools; the shovel, pick, and rake. Anything else and it would not be effective. The amount of physical and emotional effort that goes into one of these works is what makes it operate.

I decided on a simple design, and had a mental blueprint of how I wanted it to look. Marking the three circles out with a rope and anchor stake, I outlined the shapes and connected them together. Once the template was on the ground, I dug a shallow water ditch around the edges.

After that was complete, a mixture of soil and seed is added to the area inside the circles. Mixing wheat seed and wet soil with the bare hands is an empowering experience, something that must be considered. The wheat was chosen for two reasons: it has been a staple of life since the transition from hunter/gatherers and also because it creates a beautiful medium when it ripens and turns golden in the autumn.

On the periphery of the tri-circle arrangement I built three dirt mounds and placed the three menhirs atop each one, to act as a sentry or antenna. These stones I had acquired from the Feather River in Northern California in 1995, and they have been with me ever since. The relation of the mounds to the circles was due more to instinctive aesthetics, not orthodox geometry or astronomical alignments.

This was the process for Spirit Dor I.

Spirit Dor II
Spirit Dor II has a different configuration, with a quad arrangement of circles laid out in a diamond pattern. The main circle was split in the middle for a walkway, and wheat/soil was mixed, charged, and planted on either side. The two flanking circles saw the addition of corn seed, once again chosen for its life giving properties and the ability to create a natural, asymmetrical acoustic element in the autumn when it dries out and rustles in the wind. The remaining circle was planted with a combination of gourd and pumpkin. The entire formation was then outlined with rocks.

The center of the work saw the addition of what I call Earth Candle, a pit dug into the ground and filled with natural wax and tree bark. When ignited, it will burn until doused by dirt. In line with the Earth Candle was the main menhir again, this time flanked by the other two to form a triangular presence.

The last element was the Calling Circle, in which a person would stand and become centered with the entire formation.

The concept is to walk through the main wheat circle, enter the formation, light the Earth Candle, and center oneself in the Calling Circle, the whole time being aware of the resonance of the formation, how much effort it took to create it, the growing elements involved, and how they are now inter-acting.

Spherical Resonance
With the understanding that a physical body is powered by a common energy source, we can draw a conclusion that all life, single or multi-cellular, utilizes a small fraction of the overall main supply. Because energy can never actually be destroyed, only changed, the individual energy that animates a physical body is permanently a part of the larger whole, but only temporarily co-locates with the body. Once the body is no longer needed, the energy will revert back to its normal frequency and shape.

It has been proven that any loose conglomeration of elements will, in the absence of extreme environmental factors, draw together upon itself from all directions until unity is achieved. A good example is the countless stars and planets in our stellar neighborhood. Energy of a certain wavelength, frequency, or amplitude will accomplish this same feat, assuming the most compact and economical shape. I call this spherical resonance.

The Spirit Dor formations are a type of amplifier, enabling energy transference from one medium to another.

Phasing
If you can picture the average human perception operating at a certain frequency range, say 430-680 nanometers, we can group most optical experiences into this range. Because the spherical resonance is not visible to the naked eye, and the fact that a split second snap shot measured in fractions of second can capture the resonance on film when illuminated by a bright flash, we can draw the tentative conclusion that the spherical resonance is operating at a frequency beyond the human visible spectrum. This is similar in concept to how a strobe light can ‘stop the action’ of a fast moving object. 

Some photos will show partial spherical resonance, half and quarter shapes. Imagine taking a ball and holding it underwater, then slowly raising it to the surface. As it breaks the plane of the water’s surface, partial aspects of the ball’s surface will become visible, 1/16, 1/8,1/4, 1/2, and so on, until the entire ball is above the water plane and visible as a whole. Like phases of the moon, the spherical resonance retains its coherent shape, but sometimes appears as crescents or ovals, depending on what phase the camera “stops the action.”

The fractional spheres are the result of the camera catching this phasing process.

John Richards is an artist living in Fallon, Nevada.