The beauty and genius of a work of art may be reconceived, though its first material expression be destroyed; a vanished harmony may yet again inspire the composer; but when the last individual of a race of living things breathes no more, another heaven and another earth must pass before such a one can be again.
Interpretation
Art can be reimagined, but the extinction of a species is irreversible.
In this quote, William Beebe highlights the enduring nature of art and creativity compared to the finality of extinction. While a work of art can be reinterpreted or reinvented even if its original form is lost, the loss of a species signifies an irreversible gap in the world's biodiversity and heritage that cannot be filled or recreated.
In practice
In a speech about environmental conservation, one might say: 'As William Beebe reminds us, a vanished species cannot be replaced, making our conservation efforts vital.'
When we talk about music, we talk about our reaction to it. One person might say that music is so poetic, while another says it's all mathematics. Yet another might say it's about sensuality, and so on. That's all true. But music is not just one of these things. It's everything all at once.
The smile that flickers on a baby’s lips when he sleeps- does anyone know where it was born? Yes, there is a rumor that a young pale beam of a crescent moon touched the edge of a vanishing autumn cloud, and there the smile was first born in the dream of a dew-washed morning.
If you've noticed that I don't use long takes, it's not because I don't like them, but because no one gives me the necessary means to treat myself to them. It's more economical to make one image, then this image and then that image, and try to control them later, in the editing studio.
I love beauty. But I like the beauty accidentally, not dished up, served up on a platter.
As naturally as the oak bears an acorn and the vine a gourd, man bears a poem, either spoken or done.
Styles come and go. Good design is a language, not a style.
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