Wednesday, October 24, 2012

History of Terrariums


The bringing of the art of the terrarium is generally credited with a man called Dr.Nathaniel Bagshaw Ward, a London surgeon and gardening enthusiast. This came about with the publishing of his book called "On the Growth of Plants in Closely Glazed Cases" which he published in 1842.


He had the desire to watch an insect chrysalis transform into an insect so he placed it, along with some mold in a capped wide-mouthed glass bottle. He observed this bottle on a regular basis and noted how, because of the sun, moisture would be drawn to the top of the bottle during the day then circulate back down to the mold and soil in the evening. But his big surprise came when quite unexpectedly a seedling fern and a sprout of grass bloomed inside the bottle. He was very surprised by this because he had been unsuccessfully trying to grow these very things in his garden. He had surmised that pollution from local factories had been hostile to the plants and was killing them. This made him believe that the plants were doing well in his little bottle because they were sealed off from outside influences and protected from contaminants. He placed this bottle outside the window of his study and the plants inside continued to thrive for four years with no watering or outside intervention at all! From this he devised further experiments and thus his pursuit, and the science of the terrariums, was born. For a very long time these small glass enclosures were named Wardian Cases after him and even though the term is still in use today it is generally not well known and we just call them terrariums.

At the Great Exhibition of 1851, Ward displayed a bottle containing a fern and mosses that had not been watered for 18 years. The Wardian case unleashed a revolution in the mobility of commercially important plants. In Wardian cases, Robert Fortune shipped to British India, 20,000 tea plants smuggled out of Shanghai, China, to begin the tea plantations of Assam.Ward's terrariums also became popular for growing the plants, and it became, in various guises, almost a domestic necessity. The poor had to content themselves with inexpensive rudimentary versions, but there were no limits for the rich. Wardian cases grew into miniature Taj Mahals and Brighton Pavilions, perfect vehicles for the contemporary love of elaborate ornamentation as well as living plants. The Wardian case was fashionable in the United States in the early 1860s, and hardly a self-respecting Victorian household was without one. Even though history dates back terrariums to the 18th century, it is still a comparatively unknown art form in India. 

First Step...

                
               In the world we live in today, which profoundly lacks in greenery, where we literally have the effects of global warming breathing down our necks, it is a beautiful respite to go to the beach or even take an early morning or evening walk amidst any type of greenery around us. Be it the local park near your homes or the infamous Juhu chowpatty or a walk down the marine drive promenade. In a city that never sleeps, I wonder how many of us really have the time to look up and catch a glimpse of the trees above our heads while we are walking…somehow dodging the road painted with spit seems to overtake more of our attention than these simple pleasures that mother nature always so selflessly obliges. The few of us, who realize how selfish we have been, hold up protests almost every week against deforestation and uprooting the last shred of nature left around our very own houses in the form of mangroves or the few trees left mercifully dotting our sidewalks. Thus we need to take vacations to go to a place far away which is radically different from our current situations. Some place where our hearts and minds would be refreshed. Some place where we can walk on silken grass with our loved ones in peaceful anarchy. It is that feeling exactly, which all of us crave so deeply. Thus we have “hill stations” and “resorts” and “overseas” to go to, to bring us that feeling. But we at CoppeR BrainS dare to think differently. Why can’t we have a piece of Mother Nature right in our homes!!! So we can look at it and have that same peaceful pulse running down our spine every time we want to. Why not have a miniature beach right in our eyesight. Why not have a piece of the forest with a river trickling down from the woods, right into our homes.
  
Essayist Scot Russell Sanders in his Promethean inspired tale ‘The Terrarium’ describes a socially engineered world within earth itself where pieces and materials of nature are used to create the Enclosure. The Enclosure was created after the earth was rendered uninhabitable after it was plagued by pollution.  It is a life sized, albeit intriguing, fictional idea which we at CoppeR BrainS have tried to bring into a contemporary living reality. In a space starved society where we look outside our windows only to be peeking into another man’s window, we try to remember when was the last time there was a huge tree in its place and you could see a sparrow relentlessly feeding its newly spawned young ones, or an adorable chipmunk foraging for nuts.  So we decided to come up with something, so that you have to look no further than your bedside table!!! Yes that is what a terrarium is. It is a self-controlled self-sustained microcosmic ecosystem all in itself. We give you a piece of nature itself, to keep in your homes however space starved you may be. We have something for everyone!!! This is our small effort where we really wish to revolutionize and reinforce people to live au naturale.

                
                For all the love of nature that is left within the rare corners of our hearts, this effort we hope will strengthen that pillar of our humanity. We sometimes believe that we humans have made everything and everything possible too. But on the contrary the truth can never change. Nature is where we come from and that is where we perish. If one can’t simply cherish this age old balance that our planet has struck then I believe its about time we remind them.

     
      Let every single being realize of this small tiny eco system, which he or she can play God to. All it requires is a little admiration and it will definitely reflect a smile. Yes!! Admiration is all it requires, no care or maintenance. All you have to do is take it home and be happy. It’s a world in itself. A balance struck world. It will garner its strength from within itself.

     



There is a difference between saying, that change is hard to achieve and saying that the average person will never do anything. One is a challenge, and the other is a cause for despair. We at CoppeR BrainS have decided to take on the challenge.

Like Peter Marshall says - Small deeds done are better than great deeds planned.


             This is our first step...

Friday, August 31, 2012

Excuse the excuse.

       I feel kind of awkward returning after an age to my dash board. It's been long and I've managed my ignorance to writing or let's say, pursued it. It's magical how people get absorbed in their daily routine, reading articles, shedding bus tickets from the laundry, watching television and dozing off on the couch while doing that. Well all this was leisure, so you wouldn't want to know how work feels.

       Amidst all this world full of conformity, when do we unbridle? When do we stretch our limbs and reach out for things, more than staplers and hauling commute? When? Do we really not know the answer or are we all ignorant? I have short and long rendezvous with many people, its a part of my line of work. Most, unfortunately want to rant about their boring schedule, but surprisingly no one wants to do anything about it and when asked, why they don't? There is an array of excuses.

      I thought of putting the excuses away for a while and went on to 'living' the time that is given to me. There is a lot I like to do and there is a lot that I already do; sketching, tattooing, photographing etc etc. The task is to find time to do all this and the only way to do it is to excuse the excuses and move out of the shackled chores.

       A phone call to a pal, a random picked place and the date for the journey is fixed. Next pit stop, get the tickets reserved. That done, start feeling good about the forthcoming sabbatical. Yes! it is really that stupid, one just has to be stupid and do it. After the journey is over I realized that this stupidity landed me into some, memorable moments of life. It wasn't stupid anymore.

       So where did we go? What did we see? What did we do? Ain't this curious? The plan was, not to know the answers when we began. We hailed a vacation and jumped the train and shot off. The journey went on with giggles to booming laughs and the routine was lost. It simply vanished off our minds and we were imagining, what the destination would be like and what were we supposed to do? We made random plans, tried to go by them and sometimes swayed off them too. It was very easy to give away control and just take life as it comes. The 24 hours, which seemed so less before, seemed like a lifetime.

        What did we see? What did we do? Let me show you what I managed...









                       What we did is spent the time, we will cherish for our lifetimes. What we saw is the truth beyond smiles and greetings, we did as our hearts felt and as long as my opinion goes, I damn very much enjoyed it. So don't wait to excuse the excuse that ties you down to your cubicles. Be stupid and see how right it feels.

Wednesday, March 28, 2012

Photography and the SUBJECT to be Photographed

                              

                                    Time for some activity to come forth. Friends, like I mentioned in our earlier section about photography, this section will include some practical study of the elements of photography. To aid our reading, I have put up some of the shots clicked by my camera. In this section we will particularly speak of the 'subject' to be photographed, so get ready to imagine as many angles as you can for your perception.


                

                               Naked eye shows you everything and that is not very good for a photographer, is what I think. Now many varieties of cameras are available to us, some very meticulous and some just very handy. Whatever the camera, the subject remains constant, so if you don't own a high end gadget, let that not discourage you, for your subject makes a lot a difference too. A lot of things which seem very usual and non visual to the naked eye may prove to be very good subjects, so I recommend our young clickers to look at the surroundings through your camera and I gaurantee a whole different vista.




                               Start with smaller objects in the beggining, it gives a better perception towards the subject to be captured. There is always a limit as to how much you can capture in one frame, so be ready to move back and forth to get exactly what you need in the frame. I carry my camera always and any moment, if I see something interesting, I try to look at it through my camera and believe me, the camera shows me what is good and what is not. Yet for the ones who seek protocols, I will advise to just explore and not follow some list of do's and dont's, I believe that this influences one's own creativity and perception. Having no idea of deriving a subject works in favour of the photographer most of the times.




                                Now to become more statistical, I can classify subjects into few sets viz, landscapes, insects, flowers, people and living things in motion. Certainly this does not include every aspect of our section on subjects yet to start of, it does good. First of all, the subject should always be in ample lighting, that will help you from the technical manoeuvers of your gadget in the beggining.Try and look at the subject, first as your prime focus and then equally important at the background. A contrast in your subject and the background helps establish a good click.


                                  

                              Now take a look at some of the shots I managed to click. See if you find the subjects interesting. Envisage your surroundings and you should find some interesting SUBJECTS too. Dont' forget to try various angles with your camera and for a small tip :- DONT BE SHY OF THE OBSERVANT CROWD. So go ahead and explore, till we come up with some other helpful points. Till then 'Happy Clicking'
                                           
 
                              

Friday, March 16, 2012

THE LIFE THAT RUNS THROUGH OUR HEART

                                
                                     Life thrives on desires, desire to make, break and then make again. It could be hearts, homes or relations. As compelling as it is, it brings me to numerous turns, where i start feeling rooked and ennervated. All said and done, life still goes on and goes on with 'n' numbers of surprises along it's path. Instilled within me is the life that runs through this city,my city... MUMBAI. The smallest of places in this city, accomodate the largest of numbers and these are the ones who claim the most heart felt visuals and stories. One such place is the 'Kumbhar wada'.. The largest producers of earthen and ceramic pots, right in the heart of the city.



                                                              
                               Not that I bid a tour of this city but it amazes me how wonderful of a canvas it provides for many art lovers. For a person like me it is a treasure chest, full of treasures to create art, photograph and create. The sole reason to write this section is to introduce the raw resources available to 'make, break and then make again' but this time i dont mean hearts, homes and relations. This time it is art which brings hope, awe and excitement to the life aforementioned.




                                   For me it was a vista of possibilities, I envisaged beauty and tried to capture it. It brought to me immense pleasure and peace, so the feel to share some of the clicks. Now art for me came in the form of photography, pottery as a thought and the latter endeavour I keep for another time.


                        
                                 Finally an open window to close the section with some hope.. An open window to open the doors that lay closed or rooked for some reason.

Wednesday, March 14, 2012

THE QUAINT CHANGE

                                                

                                      Well, for those of you, who have already guessed where these have been clicked, a quick flash back of the quaint celebration. For those who are yet wondering, let me introduce you to the crown of the city of Mumbai. THE KALA GHODA FESTIVAL at Kala Ghoda,Colaba. These were taken during the annual festival of the year 2012.
                  One may visit this place, full of enthusiasts, art lovers and a majority of 'just for fun' people. All these people who visit have variable reasons, several opinions and diverse outlooks about this one of a kind festival.. but what stays common among all, is the awe that the aura of this festival generates.
                      I look at it as something, which brings out the strong urge for change meandering through everybody's mind, an outlet to the monotonous crowd into a most requisite, 'difference'. what does every individual see?? I assume, all that satiates one's mind and senses and i affirm that the festival delivers to this.
                 Finally, I have put up something that i saw through my camera, something that i percieved, something that satisfied my mind and senses.

Thursday, March 1, 2012

A Little Thought

Reflecting ME and ME
                There seems to be a mad rush for everything these days. Everyone is in a hurry to get somewhere or to get someone somewhere...if you understand what I mean? But amidst all this hustle, there comes a minute point where you are stationary. You wish you could move faster but you are helpless cause waiting is your only option and then for a while, you let go of the rush and take time to breathe and look around. What do you see?? Its amazing when you realize that all you see is your own reflection, just conformed in another body..
                Take time to breathe and to be yourself. Start what you really want to do, rather than being a reflection. I have started merely by doing the same. Bit by bit, I have reached 'this space' and would share some of my pensive thoughts with all of you.
                I proudly present to you my breathing space...CoppeR BrainS