Caution! Extremely Opinionated Posting!
- Thread starter DeeDeeK
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I love your elegant writing style, and opinionated people in general. As someone born and raised in the Napa-Sonoma area I also appreciate the wine references.
So we have the rowdy Boone's Farm contingent as well as the snobbish who swell our village like an overstocked 10 gallon oscar tank every weekend, saying things like "Just a hint of dirty socks, rotting rasberries and a brooding backbone of banana, with a musky finish of melon balls."
I think pirate ships, air-operated treasure chests and glow-in-the-dark gravel make the tanks fun for some people, or we can go to great pains trying to recreate an environment that most of our farm-raised fish have never seen. I doubt if the fish care about anything other than clean water, good food and places to hide, and as far as PETA is concerned we're all equally guilty anyway. :screwy:
http://www.peta.org/
So we have the rowdy Boone's Farm contingent as well as the snobbish who swell our village like an overstocked 10 gallon oscar tank every weekend, saying things like "Just a hint of dirty socks, rotting rasberries and a brooding backbone of banana, with a musky finish of melon balls."
I think pirate ships, air-operated treasure chests and glow-in-the-dark gravel make the tanks fun for some people, or we can go to great pains trying to recreate an environment that most of our farm-raised fish have never seen. I doubt if the fish care about anything other than clean water, good food and places to hide, and as far as PETA is concerned we're all equally guilty anyway. :screwy:
http://www.peta.org/
So many posts so soon! Yow!
I guess I do let my particular taste color the picture I've been trying to paint but I honestly do feel certain tanks are inhumane and to me, fishkeeping goes beyond simple visual presentation of fish and invert specimens, so while goldfish bowls and clown-vomit gravel tanks may be satisfying to some they are to me generally ugly.
This is a matter of taste and if I come across strong, so be it. If everyone was worried about stepping on one another's toes, it would be boring.
I encourage everyone to be mindful and have some sort of clear goal or goals in mind while setting up an aquarium. Sure, use a hex instead of a cuboid, or any other shape you fancy - just consider doing it for a reason, have a way of approaching a composition of fauna, flora, and decoration that is pleasing to the eye and humane, I say. If you like clown vomit gravel then by all means use it - just use it mindfully. Consider which color(s), pick fun colored plastic plants or live plants which might complement the gravel color, arrange things fancifully!
The purpose of working to examine, understand, and voice opinions on things like aesthetics is to raise awareness of the critic and the readers both. Without a background and structure, any art and artist are left afloat on a sea of choices without guidance. Fine for some, and a relief for others to find some established approaches or advice for developing their own. Amano and Dutch aquarium styles are good examples.
Dismiss my assertions of taste and good form if you will but consider what else I say - and don't mistake me for one who insists on close emulation of nature, which I certainly DON'T.
I guess I do let my particular taste color the picture I've been trying to paint but I honestly do feel certain tanks are inhumane and to me, fishkeeping goes beyond simple visual presentation of fish and invert specimens, so while goldfish bowls and clown-vomit gravel tanks may be satisfying to some they are to me generally ugly.
This is a matter of taste and if I come across strong, so be it. If everyone was worried about stepping on one another's toes, it would be boring.
I encourage everyone to be mindful and have some sort of clear goal or goals in mind while setting up an aquarium. Sure, use a hex instead of a cuboid, or any other shape you fancy - just consider doing it for a reason, have a way of approaching a composition of fauna, flora, and decoration that is pleasing to the eye and humane, I say. If you like clown vomit gravel then by all means use it - just use it mindfully. Consider which color(s), pick fun colored plastic plants or live plants which might complement the gravel color, arrange things fancifully!
The purpose of working to examine, understand, and voice opinions on things like aesthetics is to raise awareness of the critic and the readers both. Without a background and structure, any art and artist are left afloat on a sea of choices without guidance. Fine for some, and a relief for others to find some established approaches or advice for developing their own. Amano and Dutch aquarium styles are good examples.
Dismiss my assertions of taste and good form if you will but consider what else I say - and don't mistake me for one who insists on close emulation of nature, which I certainly DON'T.
Please excuse the tight editing of the above quote, excuzzzeme! Just, what I read really spoke to me and I thought I'd highlight a couple of things. Especially that last sentence appeals to me - I've been the person reached by that idea or lesson at times and I'd like to give back.
All these replies have got me thinking, a lot. I like that. I hope that it is mutual with at least a few folks following this thread.
fine line between opinion and fact, science and art. separate them and you have one heck of a point or the rough draft to a great article.
i would have to agree with that, completely.
I haven't finished reading yet, but I just wanted to point out how much this reminds me of the things that bother me about gardening. I can't tell you how many people around here erect some kind of focal point (fountain, lighthouse, American flag) and then put a few marigolds and some impatiens around it, some red mulch, and call it done. Or they put a whole bunch of 99 cent annuals in front of their hedges or whatever, more red mulch and some scalloped tree rings and that's their idea of gardening.
Most of these plants are just arranged in such a boring way (staggered or straight line), with one perspective - short plants, lots of them.
Now, there are lots of ways to criticize it. For example, red mulch is just shredded up pallets sprayed red - and there a lot more eco friendly alternatives. Also, annuals are generally wasteful of water. But even if these things weren't so, I would still criticize it (albeit only in my mind) because it's just ugly, and boring, and can't these people come up with anything better? It's better than nothing, I suppose, but not by much, in my book.
I have nothing against fanciful decorations - flamingos, gazing balls, lawn gnomes, swan planters - can all be fun. But the lack of effort and artfulness in these sort of "landscapes" that I am describing, are not really fun at all...they are boring and so so cliche.
I think this is similar to what you are talking about...but I could be wrong.
At the very least, I thought it might make you feel better to hear another opinionated person's ramble...sorry for the hijack
Most of these plants are just arranged in such a boring way (staggered or straight line), with one perspective - short plants, lots of them.
Now, there are lots of ways to criticize it. For example, red mulch is just shredded up pallets sprayed red - and there a lot more eco friendly alternatives. Also, annuals are generally wasteful of water. But even if these things weren't so, I would still criticize it (albeit only in my mind) because it's just ugly, and boring, and can't these people come up with anything better? It's better than nothing, I suppose, but not by much, in my book.
I have nothing against fanciful decorations - flamingos, gazing balls, lawn gnomes, swan planters - can all be fun. But the lack of effort and artfulness in these sort of "landscapes" that I am describing, are not really fun at all...they are boring and so so cliche.
I think this is similar to what you are talking about...but I could be wrong.
At the very least, I thought it might make you feel better to hear another opinionated person's ramble...sorry for the hijack
I must agree, and no worries 'bout hijacking. Multiple perspectives and opinions are super.
I must add that if one only wants to breed, say, discus, as mentioned in an earlier post, with bare tank and sponge filter, by all means - it is an example of aquarium keeping with direction and is thought out. In such a case, it's not about looks or any other ideals other than function.
I'd prefer one very thoughtful and artful disneyland castle/clown puke gravel/dayglow plastic plants/glo-fish aquarium to a careless and thoughtless 'nature aquarium' just so long as the fishies are happy enough in their surrounds.
I must add that if one only wants to breed, say, discus, as mentioned in an earlier post, with bare tank and sponge filter, by all means - it is an example of aquarium keeping with direction and is thought out. In such a case, it's not about looks or any other ideals other than function.
I'd prefer one very thoughtful and artful disneyland castle/clown puke gravel/dayglow plastic plants/glo-fish aquarium to a careless and thoughtless 'nature aquarium' just so long as the fishies are happy enough in their surrounds.
If a person's style includes fake gravel that is blue and green, that is there style. I have seen some very cool tanks that were made up nearly entirely of fake items, but had he cooles theme of being an entirely white tank; the fish, the decor, the substrate were all white. This effect is not possible with naural means, and it was just as much a work of art as most natural tanks I have seen.
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