Scratching the Surface
and chasing waterfalls
We recently went on a forest hike in Kuching, Sarawak, surrounding Mount Santubong, a mountain which peaks above the town. Flying in to Kuching by plane offers a bird’s eye view of the multiple rivers running through the landscape like meandering veins, supporting the livelihoods of people living alongside them.
We chose to stay at a rainforest resort that was away from the city, in a rustic treehouse sandwiched between the coastal forest and the open sea, for a night. Aside from being a tranquil location, one the main reasons we chose to stay there was for the hiking trails that goes into the national park.
Our morning was spent exploring a waterfall hike. Though it was an approximately two kilometres hike, it took us on an exciting three-hour journey, climbing through steep slopes, a fun rope bridge with a fuzzy caterpillar to welcome, and finally, a quiet waterfall.
Going on a forest hike like this often brings us inspirations in different forms, shapes and textures.
When we finally approached the waterfall, we noticed the bottom of the cool waterfall pools were covered with various odd-shaped rock fragments. Naturally, an occupational hazard of ours is to make a swatch of the various colours we could find…
There is something meditative, yet also thrilling, when we find a coloured rock that leaves a vibrant streak when rubbed across a big stone.
In the small waterfall pool, we found at least five very different earth colours. These moments of scratching foraged clay rocks into earth paints connect us back to the historical paints created thousands of years ago, such as those found in the very early paint kits which consist of iron ochre pigments, bone marrow, and bone fragments for mixing.
Before leaving, we washed these streaks off; as quickly as they came, the coloured pigments re-assimilate back into the stream, continuing on the many transformations they will take to become part of something else.
Earth as a creative medium speaks deeply to us partly because it literally gets one closer to the ground. From our observations from previous outdoor sessions, we find that working with earth also has the ability to shift feelings of anxiety and fears about touching “dirt”. The idea of touching the ground may put some people off, but when we see how something simple can end up creating beautiful hues for artmaking -
perhaps our ideas about what is dirty can also start to shift.
Upcoming Sessions:
If you are interested in getting closer to the ground, come touch and talk soil with us, through a pinch of soil.
Last year, we had the privilege of attending our friends at Living Soil Asia’s course “Living Soil”, where we were brought through the topic on soil food webs and the biodiversity it supports. Together with other soil-inspired participants, the conversations flowed and found its way to sharing about healthy living, and how inviting care for healthy soil also forms the foundation for healthy societies.
Together with them, we are hosting earth exploration and painting sessions at four locations across Singapore: a classic favourite of ours at Pasir Ris Park, the hyper-urban space around Pearl’s Hill Terrace, a neighbourhood void deck in Yishun estate, and a community garden built with passionate volunteers in Boon Lay. Soil is a beautiful way for artistic expression, but looking into soil can also tell us much more about the land around us!
There are some remaining slots available for these sessions, so do come and find out for yourself!
Till the next letter,
Liz and Shirin