Artist Uses Art To Stop Construction Of A Gas Pipeline

A unique art piece was installed in a forest in Peekskill, New York. An ecological artist named Aviva Rahmani was contacted by a group of anti-fracking activists who were searching for a way to stop a laying of a new pipeline under the Hudson River within 30 feet of New York City. “When I looked at [maps of] the proposed pipeline, the first thing I thought of was musical lines,” Rahmani said, and that's when an idea occurred to her - she created The Blued Tree Symphony and painted the trees as if they were the notes of the melody, this way making her art piece not only musical but also visual. Opposing to potential environmental impacts such as methane leaks and groundwater contamination, Rahmani and a group of activists were aiming to stop the laying of the pipeline by simply declaring that the area in which the pipeline would be laid is copyrighted since it is a visual and musical piece of art. A similar idea succeded in Canada, when an artist Peter van Tiesenhausen declared that his land, beneath which a pipeline was planned to be laid, is actually a piece of copyrighted art, this way stopping the fuel companies from destroying his land. Unfortunately, after a tiring legal battle, Rahmani and her fellow team members have lost the case. On September 21st, 2015 Aviva Rahmani said, 'It was destroyed and honestly for a long time I found that so overwhelmingly upsetting that they had done it that I wasn't sure what my next move should be.' But not everything is lost, according to Aviva, 'they can destroy every last trace of the project, but the ideas can't be killed because once you get an idea out there it's never lost.' You can find more information about The Blued Trees Symphony on their Facebook page. (h/t Hyperallergic)

Aviva Rahmani is an ecological artist who thought of the best way to fight against a laying of a gas pipeline beneath a river near New York City

Photo by Daisy Morton

In 2015 she was contacted by a group of local activists who were trying to find a way to stop the construction because of the potential environmental impacts such as groundwater contamination

Photo by Jack Baran

“When I looked at [maps of] the proposed pipeline, the first thing I thought of was musical lines,” Rahmani said

Photo by Aviva Rahmani

That's when she had an idea to write a symphony and paint the trees as if they were notes to the melody, the artist used a blue pigment which was safe for the environment

This way Rahmani's art piece called 'The Blued Trees Symphony' was not only musical but also visual, and the most important part is that she could copyright the trees

Photo by Minister Erik McGregor Photo by Robin Boucher

So with the help of the community, they started painting the trees, and so the legal battle began

Photo by Robin Boucher

Unfortunately, on September 21st, 2015 Rahmani has lost the case and the company started constructing the pipeline

Rahmani says she was destroyed and so upset she wasn't sure what her next step should be

Photo by Robin Boucher

But even though their incredible idea didn't work, it still remains as one of the most creative ways to fight for our environment

You can watch the making of The Blued Trees Symphony in this video