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Phil Douglis | all galleries >> Gallery Thirty: When walls speak and we listen > Einstein, St. Barts, French West Indies, 2011
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Einstein, St. Barts, French West Indies, 2011
01-JAN-2011

Einstein, St. Barts, French West Indies, 2011

A temporary wall in downtown Gustavia displays a likeness of the man who authored the theory of relativity holding a sign telling us that love, rather than science, is the ultimate answer. I waited for a string of cruise ship passengers to approach the sign and made this image in mid stride. They seem bent on shopping in St. Barts, even though most of the shops were closed, ignoring the sentiment painted on the wall before them.

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Phil Douglis 10-Oct-2011 01:57
They seem to be much too intent on shopping -- the theory of relativity is of no import at the moment.
longbachnguyen 10-Oct-2011 00:35
Fantastic Phil, I don't think those people even notice the sign and that Einstein exists.
Phil Douglis 28-Mar-2011 19:43
Good point, Tim -- and an incongruous one at that. Of course, if Einstein was carrying a sign, it would probably be written in the language he used in his communications with the world, which was English.
Tim May 28-Mar-2011 18:45
I find myself wondering about the language on St Barts. The message is in English not French. So maybe only the tourists need to love.
Phil Douglis 16-Jan-2011 00:21
Thank you, Iris -- I agree with Einstein on this one.
Iris Maybloom (irislm) 15-Jan-2011 23:43
Einstein said that “the true sign of intelligence is not knowledge but imagination.” Your images make me feel very intelligent.
Phil Douglis 14-Jan-2011 23:12
Very true, Celia. Einstein does seem alive, because he is contrasted to living people here. The real people and the painted person certainly are interacting within my frame, even if they are blind to each other. Incongruity takes over, as Einstein can't see the determined shoppers, and the shoppers seem to ignore Einstein and his message.
Cecilia Lim 14-Jan-2011 22:28
I love how you bring two separate elements in a scene-Einstein and the ship passengers together to imply interaction between the two. Einstein suddenly comes alive, purposeful and personal.
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