Read the reflections of Ben Creelman a Beyond guide in 2006 and 2007 at his Blog.
http://benpcreelman.blogspot.com
Monday, September 24, 2007
Monday, September 10, 2007
Combination Sea Kayaking and Hiking trip
This spring rumors started flying around the Beyond community about the possibility of a combo trip: to paddle from Egmont to Basecamp, and then do a mountain route. Everyone had different chunks of info regarding the trip: who would guide it, how long it would take, what route would be done, where the trip was from. As it turned out, two sea kayakers, Andrew Akridge and Mike Cobb, and two mountain guides, Matty Azar and myself, had the joy of guiding 18 studly high school grads from Georgia up the Jervis Inlet to the summit of Sun Peak (actually JJ the peak directly behind Sun Peak).
The trip was as huge success. We experienced a five hour night paddle (or death paddle, it depends on who you ask…) under the starlit sky with the bioluminescence lighting up every fish darting below us, turning every paddle stroke into an explosion of green light. We summited JJ in a white out and as we crossed the glacier the clouds broke before us, revealing the grandeur of those mountains. We shared our life stories and asked each other the hard questions that often go unsaid. We talked about how we are going to live for Christ in the newness of the upcoming year.
It was an impacting week for everyone involved…campers, leaders, and the four of us guides alike. It’s hard to explain how sweet that trip was in just a few paragraphs, and maybe that’s for the better…our experiences will only be fully known by those we shared them with. We can say that there are 18 guys fired up to live a life glorifying to God in their post high school adventures.
The trip was as huge success. We experienced a five hour night paddle (or death paddle, it depends on who you ask…) under the starlit sky with the bioluminescence lighting up every fish darting below us, turning every paddle stroke into an explosion of green light. We summited JJ in a white out and as we crossed the glacier the clouds broke before us, revealing the grandeur of those mountains. We shared our life stories and asked each other the hard questions that often go unsaid. We talked about how we are going to live for Christ in the newness of the upcoming year.
It was an impacting week for everyone involved…campers, leaders, and the four of us guides alike. It’s hard to explain how sweet that trip was in just a few paragraphs, and maybe that’s for the better…our experiences will only be fully known by those we shared them with. We can say that there are 18 guys fired up to live a life glorifying to God in their post high school adventures.
Thursday, September 6, 2007
Beyond Reason
............... is a interactive sculpture that was completed and dedicated this summer.
Roger Feldman, Department Chair of Art / Professor of Art at Seattle Pacific Universit
y, designed and created this sulpture.
Roger Feldman received his BA from the University of Washington and his MFA from Claremont Graduate University. In 1986 he received an Individual Artist Grant from the National Endowment for the Arts in Sculpture. His interactive site-specific installations have been exhibited nationally and internationally. Recent exhibits have included work shown at the Tacoma Art Museum, Suyama Space in Seattle, and Schloss Mittersill in Austria. His work in Graphic Design has included clients such as Microsoft, Boeing, Northwest Hospital, The American Cancer Society, and Harborview Medical Center. Feldman received the Prescott Award for Sculpture from CIVA (2005), and his large drawing, “Current” was included in “The Next Generation,” exhibition at MOBIA, in New York City. He has been teaching at Seattle Pacific University since 2000.
On August 20th 2007 Roger, Astrid (Roger's wife) and the Beyond Malibu 2007 Staff had an opportunity to dedicate this sculpture at the site in Princess Louisa. This allowed Roger to begin the oral tradition at Beyond of sharing the metaphors experienced in the sculpture to guests, staff and trip participants.
Here is the written description---
"Beyond Reason is a multi-faceted experiential reference to the reasons for Beyond’s existence. The five components in their particular arrangement allude to such themes as repentance, humility, spiritual focus, sacrifice and, ultimately, the intersection between humanity and divinity.
The interactive nature of the sculpture allows individuals to experience it from multiple directions. The semi-circular wall functions as a sound collector focusing the sound of a large creek feeding into the inlet, bringing to mind scriptural images of water. It also invites individuals to experience repentance by walking from one corner around the 180 degree curve to the other corner thereby changing their direction to head the other way.
The passage way behind the semi-circle leads from a darkened space to light. With a diagonal log leaning in the passage, one must stoop down and humble themselves to continue.
The rectangle leaning on an angle is a Golden Mean rectangle, which was developed by the Ancient Greeks as their ideal proportion that carried into architecture and mathematics and symbolizes man’s ideals.
The diagonal log, representing the “tree of life” breaks through the rectangle and leans on the semicircular wall. The log is the apex of the piece as it supports the chain which drops down to support one of the two identical triangles. The chain, often associated with bondage becomes a reference to sacrifice and support. Because of this element, humanity is set free to see beyond the immediate.
The other triangle representing half of the golden mean rectangle stands vertically lending support to the rectangle and referencing the surrounding mountains.
Even the materials used in the installation of the sculpture have significance. The 4 x 12 beams, recycled from Malibu’s old dock are the dominant material of the sculpture. The recycled wood used now for another purpose symbolizes what happens when the Creator intersects with our lives.
The combination of these components speak to the reasons behind Beyond Malibu’s existence, and invites further exploration into that reality." Roger Feldman Summer of 2007
Roger Feldman, Department Chair of Art / Professor of Art at Seattle Pacific Universit
y, designed and created this sulpture.Roger Feldman received his BA from the University of Washington and his MFA from Claremont Graduate University. In 1986 he received an Individual Artist Grant from the National Endowment for the Arts in Sculpture. His interactive site-specific installations have been exhibited nationally and internationally. Recent exhibits have included work shown at the Tacoma Art Museum, Suyama Space in Seattle, and Schloss Mittersill in Austria. His work in Graphic Design has included clients such as Microsoft, Boeing, Northwest Hospital, The American Cancer Society, and Harborview Medical Center. Feldman received the Prescott Award for Sculpture from CIVA (2005), and his large drawing, “Current” was included in “The Next Generation,” exhibition at MOBIA, in New York City. He has been teaching at Seattle Pacific University since 2000.
On August 20th 2007 Roger, Astrid (Roger's wife) and the Beyond Malibu 2007 Staff had an opportunity to dedicate this sculpture at the site in Princess Louisa. This allowed Roger to begin the oral tradition at Beyond of sharing the metaphors experienced in the sculpture to guests, staff and trip participants.Here is the written description---
"Beyond Reason is a multi-faceted experiential reference to the reasons for Beyond’s existence. The five components in their particular arrangement allude to such themes as repentance, humility, spiritual focus, sacrifice and, ultimately, the intersection between humanity and divinity.The interactive nature of the sculpture allows individuals to experience it from multiple directions. The semi-circular wall functions as a sound collector focusing the sound of a large creek feeding into the inlet, bringing to mind scriptural images of water. It also invites individuals to experience repentance by walking from one corner around the 180 degree curve to the other corner thereby changing their direction to head the other way.
The passage way behind the semi-circle leads from a darkened space to light. With a diagonal log leaning in the passage, one must stoop down and humble themselves to continue.
The rectangle leaning on an angle is a Golden Mean rectangle, which was developed by the Ancient Greeks as their ideal proportion that carried into architecture and mathematics and symbolizes man’s ideals.
The diagonal log, representing the “tree of life” breaks through the rectangle and leans on the semicircular wall. The log is the apex of the piece as it supports the chain which drops down to support one of the two identical triangles. The chain, often associated with bondage becomes a reference to sacrifice and support. Because of this element, humanity is set free to see beyond the immediate.
The other triangle representing half of the golden mean rectangle stands vertically lending support to the rectangle and referencing the surrounding mountains.
Even the materials used in the installation of the sculpture have significance. The 4 x 12 beams, recycled from Malibu’s old dock are the dominant material of the sculpture. The recycled wood used now for another purpose symbolizes what happens when the Creator intersects with our lives.
The combination of these components speak to the reasons behind Beyond Malibu’s existence, and invites further exploration into that reality." Roger Feldman Summer of 2007
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