Have you been known to whistle while you work? It's not a pastime that's solely indulged in by wishful princesses, random woodland creatures, or sleepy, grumpy, sneezy, dopey, bashful dwarves. Some say that the very act of whistling picks up your spirits and helps make the weekly grind just a little easier to deal with. Who couldn't use a stress buster these days? Between you and me though, the only people who I ever see puckering up their lips in public are older gents who have carpets of hair leaping out of their ear canals.
Anywhoooo, maybe you'd feel a little more hip if you were able to release your work related tensions by blowing some air through one of these babies (above). Personally, I don't have a drop of musical talent lurking inside of my soul (aside from being a wicked top scorer on Guitar Hero) but Swedish art student Anna Kovárová's Woodwind could easily make me a convert. The Konstfact university attendee whittled her wood flute from a living oak branch "donor," meaning that the kind arbor soul is still alive and kicking (aside from a presumably uncomfortable wound in its extremities).
Designed to play sideways like a conventional flute or piccolo, I think that greenies and mainstreamers alike would be happy to have Kovárová carve a tension releasing wind instrument out of a tree branch of their own choosing. The Master's Thesis exhibitor was recently quoted as saying that she'd like to “return to the tree during the years to come, to play a piece and see how the living material will change the sound.” It seems like a nice idea and it's definitely green (aside from the minor ouch factor that the tree has to deal with). Footage of a somber Kovárová playing her own creation is in the video above -- just be sure to fast-forward to the 1:30 mark if you're a cut-to-the-chase kind of person.
Linda Lucille
said on July 11, 2009