BEAUTY MEMORY ENTROPY

HISTORY AND THEORY

 

How to Construct a Narrative: Remembering the Rapids

Jane Hilder, University of Manitoba

 

ABSTRACT

Beauty – Beauty is found in the visual: in the landscape of trees, moss and rocks. It is found in the auditory: in the hush of the forest, the crack of fallen branches, the running of water. It is found in knowledge: in the resilience of nature, in a sense of optimism and justice, in the persisting relationships of people.

Memory – Our memories may be mistaken; we may romanticize the past, we may bury the pain and gloss over selfish acts. Our memories may change; through time, through gaining new information, through examining what remains.

Entropy – We control our lives the best we can, but greater forces may uproot our efforts at any moment. We exert ourselves to reduce the entropy, rather than follow its guidance.

Photos, sketches, and first-hand accounts bring to life the narrative of my mother’s childhood, growing up in the 1960’s and 70’s as the daughter of a Manitoba Hydro employee in Grand Rapids. Almost fifty years later, I have visited the town for myself, and a very different narrative has emerged. I have seen a community displaced by the force of hydroelectric development; a town divided by income and circumstances. Now, I am working to unite the memories I have heard with the reality I have seen. I am on a journey to understand and share the true nature of Grand Rapids, Manitoba.

“If someone is able to show me that what I think or do is not right, I will happily change, for I seek the truth…It is the person who continues in his self-deception and ignorance who is harmed.  Marcus Aurelius, Meditations**

 

BIO

Jane Hilder is a graduate student at the University of Manitoba, in the masters of Landscape Architecture program. After completing an undergraduate degree in Environmental Design, she has become interested in concepts of large-scale planning and design, particularly hydrological-based work. This summer, she traveled with a group from the University’s Native Studies Department, visiting Hydro-affected communities in Northern Manitoba. Jane is currently in the process of studying and sharing her findings.