Farmlands Day 12: Nurture or Nature?

All this time I thought the inspiration for these fields came from nature. Seeing farms all of my life, watching tractors tilling fields, and planting my own gardens had to be the genesis of all of these ideas, right? Not entirely...

This morning's newspaper had a blip about an exhibit opening today at the Yale University Art Gallery: "Eero Saarinen: Shaping the Future". The Yale Whale, one of my favorite modern buildings on the Yale campus, was designed in 1956 by Saarinen, and I have always been drawn to its swooping roof line. Likewise, Jorn Utzon's Sidney Opera House with its look of wind in the sails of a ship is also a favorite in our home. Both Utzon and Saarinen are Scandinavian...

So where is the connection? Must be genetic. My farmer grandparents were from Denmark, as were all of my known ancestors. From the furniture in my childhood home (Danish Modern) to the bedtime stories we were read (Hans Christian Anderson), we were immersed in Scandinavian culture. Didn't everyone grow up with a jar of pickled herring in their refrigerator and a great recipe for pastry? Could there be a genetic connection between my love of the sweeping lines of these architects and the quilted lines of my large artwork? You be the judge.

Note: Eero Saarinen Sketch above is from the Eero Saarinen Collection, Manuscript and Archives of Yale University. Sidney Opera House and other buildings by Jorn Utzon can be viewed at this link.