Another Tuesday, another decision. Pundits say that by tonight, we could have nominees in both parties. If my political decision making device is accurate, however, I wouldn't be so sure. Past readers will recall the
back story of this science/art experiment/installation. Basically, I've employed red, white and blue berries collected from various Western states to predict the outcomes of the presidential primaries. At various major elections, I present a snapshot of the electorate and offer a critical review of the candidates' positions. Since setting this up back in January, I have not uncapped the tubes. You can track the changes on
this collection of posts. But for contrast's sake, just take a look at what politics does to the voters in just 3 short months:
This compares to January 8:
The entire collection of specimens has dulled, even accounting for the differences in lighting. (The artist apologizes for having a day job.) This clearly represents the dulling effect that the increasing rancor has on common citizens. Another striking finding is the bold assault of the red berries with mold.
Earlier observations identified some of the mold as being blue, suggesting the possibility of formerly red voters crossing over. (If no one has coined the term, "Obama Republicans," let me take this opportunity to do so.) Today, however, the white snowberries show intense degradation. In fact, it appears as though small gremlins have spun cocoons in that sample. Snow. Fresh. Pure. These all could be represented by this specimen. These all are no longer present in the race. Biting attacks, political dirt and stale refrains now dominate. It is still unclear which berry correlates to which candidate. Perhaps the dear reader can offer a suitable explanation.
But what of my predictions? Or shall I say, what of the experiment's predictions. It is obvious to this observer that neither set of blue berries shows a dominating difference of decay. At the end of the night, neither will have sufficient reserve to claim victory. On the red side, however, both samples are bathed in mold. My guess is that a more intensive analysis than observation will be needed to correlate the presentation at hand with the apparent victory about to be handed to John McCain. And by 'more intensive analysis,' I am thinking 'taste.'
Let's start by taking account of the facts. The red rose hips are moldy. They have been consumed with different species. A mild filamentous growth is competing with a blue-green bread mold. That's right, red is being consumed by blue. More on that later. The most striking finding is that the snowberries have been consumed by a monoculture pearly filamentous species. The white rose hips are untouched. The small false grape have developed a dusting of white at the bottom inch or so of that sample. Surprisingly, the blue marbles' plaque-like mold has receded from the two fruits closest to the cork.
It appears that the blue marbles at right (proper name: Elaeocarpis grandis) have developed a white scaly monospecies growth. The effect is quite striking, a simple, raised white scale with well demarcated borders in 0.5 mm to 8 mm diameter colonies involves the surface of each fruit without altering the underlying azure pigmentation. The next development since New Hampshire is a localized proliferation of filamentous grey mold on select snow berries. Colonization is limited to berries that have undergone chromatic denigration (white to brown). Numerous unaltered berries persist. The other specimens remain grossly intact, but with minor signs of degradation and dehydration. 
As a reminder, the original colors were:
Happy New Year.
Seattle's Colors have transformed into something a little more festive than their previous incarnation. This is a living installation, in that each tube may be cleaned and refilled with specimens found near my home. These items were all collected from Magnuson Park on a Saturday stroll with my wife. 'Tis the season for red and white berries. The previous incarnation grew a variety of mold in the months between Seattle Colors V1 and V2, further emphasizing the living nature of this piece.
Here are the same berries - red, orange, yellow, green, blue, and violet - after growing mold and being submerged in dilute bleach. I wonder what the next phase of Seattle's Colors will be? If you have any ideas for me, here's a fun craft: Download the image below, color it in and emailit to me. (Or just post a comment below.)
Merry Christmas! And please don't go out and buy stuff just for the sake of it. Consider crafting something personal, giving a gift of an experience or assembling a creative alternative to a store-bought item.
"Seattle Colors" is a reflection of some of the social and political tendencies found among Seattle's human residents. The berries were collected all within Seattle's municipal boundaries, and often were located an arm's length from bus shelters I frequent. Berries are from left to right: hawthorn, mountain ash, snowberry, red alder, oregon grape and salal.
My other pieces are viewable at Nature, Reordered.
