This painting took couple years to finish, working here and there as studies allowed. That, and there may literally be a million brush strokes between the galaxy and buffalo hairs alone!
The idea came to me during a winter trip to Yellowstone with Tim. We learned how some animals in Yellowstone have unique countercurrent vessel arangement in their legs. This creates a temperature gradient along the length of the leg, preventing freezing cold blood from circulating throughout the body and then lowering core temps. It’s amazing to me the ability nature has to adapt to environments through small changes in DNA sequences and also by activating certain genes in response to environment — all from patterned arrangement of nucleic and amino acids.
At this particular pool, a thermophile bacteria was discovered called Thermus aquaticus (en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thermus_aquaticus) which enabled DNA cloning and seqencing in the early years because it could withstand the higher temps of the process.
Patterns of molecules give rise to proteins, enzymes, and DNA, which in turn give rise to all living things. Changes in these patterns result in new emergent properties: temperature tolerance, buffalo countercurrent vessels, you, me…
Patterns also repeat, from microscopic scale to macroscopic scale. The web-like structure top left is the pattern some CNS neurons assume (assets.transductions.net/2010/02/neurons.jpg). To the top right is the similar pattern of galaxies strewn across the universe (www.mpa-garching.mpg.de/galform/virgo/millennium/seqF_063…).
You’d think that the complexity of the body would require a soup of every element in existence… But no. We’re 98% (by count) of just 4 atoms: hydrogen, oxygen, carbon and nitrogen. It’s the arrangement and pattern of these 4 that gives rise to our complexity.
It’s less the things we’re made of and more their patterns that give meaning to our substance.
Oil on Canvas, 2015
