Haunting Images

Robert and Shana ParkeHarrison have created the most incredible, haunting images I’ve seen in some time.

“Listening to the Earth” & “Mending the Earth”

What does this have to do with integrative pediatrics? As many of you know, I write a lot about the environment as it relates to children’s health. When I came across an exhibit of the ParkeHarrisons’ work (The Architect’s Brother), I was immediately moved by the connection of the images to feelings many of us share about the state of our physical environment, our earth.

As curator Nancy E. Green at the Herbert F. Johnson Museum of Art at Cornell University notes, “The ParkeHarrisons’ innovative approach addresses environmental concerns in a haunting format, raising important questions about our stewardship of our greatest resource, the earth… There is both hope and despair in these images, offering concrete choices for our future.”

Indeed, the works are quite Beckett-like, with Robert pictured as the “Everyman” in every scene. There are also echoes of Chaplin and Magritte. I encourage you to look at other images of their work, either on line or in a wonderful book documenting their work.