The Sand Hill Review http://www.sandhillreview.org 2011
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The Book of the
Elements of Machines Leonardo
recommends gears. Crank, pinion, the toothed wheel and rack. Also ratchet
wheel, pulleys and pulley blocks, axles of all sorts. To animate the
landscape: copy it. Find equilibrium in a bird’s flight. Joints and hinges
resemble what they imitate. Crank to crankshaft. Flywheel. Spring. Study the
leg joint, stand in a far field, use the ten offices of the eye. Cams. Levers
of every kind. Chestnut, elm, oak and ilex. I am mirror writing with my left
hand. Chains, belts, rotating airscrew, a study of light and shadow. The
unwritten treatise on water. Anatomical aerodynamics sketched from a bird’s
wing. Cantilevers, cadavers. Cold muscle flayed under the knife. Archetypal
geometric forms. The mental discourse of paint layered image upon image. The
heart is a furnace. It burns air. We will walk on water. Sally
Ashton |
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