WATCHING WHALES - ART AND NATURE
by Esta Lee Albright
Reprinted from Soundings, April 1999
Sea otters do not have hind feet made for
running and most baleen whales do not have
a bulbous head, despite what you might see
in paintings, sculpture and jewelry. For
people who love to watch marine animals in
their natural setting, artistic license is no
excuse for inaccuracy. Artists we want to
support do spend long hours studying an
animal's anatomy and behavior, then give us
art that makes us learn and feel the animal's
power and beauty. An example is the
sculpture of Randy Puckett, this ACS
chapter's first president. Watching Randy's
sculpture develop has educated us into
expecting truth in marine mammal art.
Lumping all whales' rostrums (front ends)
into a general balloon shape is a most
irresponsible act, though it seems to be an
easy shape to work into jewelry and
pictures for children. It's everywhere.
This popularized whale shape most
closely fits the sperm whale, a "toothed"
whale, with head much different from any of
the baleen whales. The big, round, upper
front (the melon) of the sperm whale has oil
and is important to the whale's ability to
echolocate, as is the rounded melon on the
fronts of dolphins' heads (who also are
toothed whales).
Whales with baleen hanging from the
upper jaw differ among themselves. The
Right Whale has a head that looks bulbous
but has a long, arched upper jaw that does
not resemble a toothed whale. The Blue
Whale has an elegantly flat, smooth upper
part of the head, with a lower jaw so
streamlined it belies the whale's ability to
greatly expand throat grooves and gulp food
and water to be strained past the baleen. In-
between, the Gray Whale's head is slightly
arched and the mouth rather equally divides
it. The Humpback Whale has big bumps
called tubercles on the upper jaw, and Right
Whales have rough lumps called callosities.
Watching baleen whales here in the
summer when they often are feeding by
surface gulping, we have problems seeing a
definite shape of the head because of the
huge expansion of throat grooves. There is a
surprisingly quick and coordinated
movement of body, jaws and grooves.
Whales spyhopping or breaching give us a
much different idea of the whale's shape, as
well as a big thrill!
Understanding how the entire body is
structured, and how it is used, should be an
entry-level requirement for artists depicting
cetaceans. And, difficult as it may be,
hanging around watching an animal in its
own environment adds experience and
emotion to the study.
A local artist whose nature art is right out
there in nature is woodcarver Leland
Petersen. He grew up in Pacific Grove,
spent his career outdoors carrying mail, and
started carving wood 50 years ago. When
ACS Monterey Bay sponsored Beachwatch,
Leland was one of the volunteers who
monitored beached marine mammals and
spent hours watching them nearby. Years of
up-close experience goes into his art.
Another active ACS and Beachwatch
member was John Ware, whose ruddy face
shone with enthusiasm for whales and seals.
He volunteered at Pt. Lobos, too, and after
his death a memorial bench for him was put
there on Whalers Knoll, carved by Leland.
At most ACS meetings we could see both of
them listening and soaking up information
about whales. Leland carved a Gray Whale,
our winter whale, and a Humpback, a
summer whale here, on John's bench.
Using pictures and descriptions, Leland
carved small wooden dolphins and whales
of local species, to be hung on a long rope at
points that demonstrated the animals'
lengths. This rope was laid out beside the
ACS booth at public events and walkers
paced off lengths of killer whales, gray
whales, blue whales and others.
Over the past few years, more memorial
benches have been carved by Leland for Pt.
Lobos. They are of natural wood and are
placed so well into the natural setting that
walkers don't see them until they come right
upon them and realize it would be good to
sit down awhile. Whales, sea otters,
jellyfish, hawks and herons, carved lifelike
in "shadowbox" relief, adorn benches
hidden beside trails in 6 locations.
Something about the benches tucked into
the natural setting of Pt. Lobos, and Leland's
and Randy's work, suggests the ultimate
mission of marine art: taking our senses
from our place on land into the nearby
ocean world, where life has different
requirements, thus different shapes. The
best art supports this transfer, teaching us
how the differences work and soothing us
with their beauty.
Esta Lee Albright works as a naturalist on whalewatch boats.
|| Glossary ||
Return to ACS Monterey Bay home page ||
Photos by Esta Lee Albright.
Last updated November 20, 2000.