Harn Museum

The pieces I’ve chosen to compare from the Harn Museum are the works Scene on Snake, Key Gulf Coast and Rosignano Solvay, the former painted by German artist Hermann Herzog around 1896-1910 and the latter photographed by Italian Massimo Vitali in 1995. Both scenes take place on a beach.

In Scene on Snake Key, we see a man strolling along the underbrush of sand dunes on the beach, perhaps walking his dog. He is enjoying the nice weather and beautiful day by taking advantage and walking outside. However, we know that beach shorelines erode quickly, and the sand formations are apt to vary rapidly over time. With climate change over the past few decades, the site of the island painting may not even exist anymore. Conservation is a key concept emanated by this piece; though the shoreline may fade away, its natural beauty is preserved forever in this painting by Herzog. Local governments and environmentalist organizations (by governing and serving communities to promote a good life) should fight to protect areas such as this, for the essence of this ecosystem to be able to be enjoyed by future generations.

Almost a century later, Rosignano Solvay was photographed by Vitali. We see a multitude of people on the beach, relaxing and enjoying the day, much like the man from Scene on Snake Key. Though another shoreline scene, we see the effects of industrialization with smoking factory smokestacks in the background, whose wastes are more likely than not being released into the ocean where the beach-goers are playing in the water. Eventually, the shoreline here will also fade away, but will pose a threat rather than a vacation spot to locals, as massive pollution over time can cause water to become unsuitable for swimming, and for organisms to exist and live there. If the spread of industrialization is not curbed or regulated in future years, the entire coast has the potential to become nothing more than land for factories to be built on, and for  the ocean to become a dumping ground for waste.

Looking back, a painting such as Herzog’s appeals to our generation when compared to the more modern photo by Vitali. Though different beached in different countries, the threat both areas face due to the expansion of machines and pollution is the same. Shorelines and other wildlife areas would be declared as preserves, in order to preserve the natural beauty for posterity to look upon, experience, and enjoy.