Whatever you think of the crop circle phenomenon —alien symbols, messages from Gaia, vandalic graffiti or magick sigils— I think we all can agree at least on one thing: Many of them are gorgeous to look at. Which begs the question: Why hasn’t there ever been a proper museum exhibit showcasing these fascinating works of art?
Fortunately, the fine folk working at the Witlshire museum have corrected this unforgivable omission. From June 21st to August 31st of 2014, the exhibit “Exploring the Mystery and Beauty of Crop Circles” will be showcased; the first ever exhibition of its kind, right at the heart of the crop circle capital of the world.
The exhibit is being curated by Dutch and German crop circle researchers Monique Klinkenbergh and Andreas Müller, and along with large-size prints of the most prominent crop circle photographs taken since the phenomenon started —or since the circles gathered public attention, whichever you prefer— it also seeks to offer some background information in the history of the phenomenon, and the research conducted so far in trying to explain it.
“The concept of our exhibition is based on the idea that there is a genuine, not man-made phenomenon”, adds Monique Klinkenbergh. “For this view, we present evidence and background facts. Over the last three decades printed and aired media presented the phenomenon mostly as the result ‘Dough and Dave’, the two elderly tricksters who suddenly appeared on the scene in 1991, followed by students and hoaxers. With our exhibition in the Wiltshire Museum we also want to set some records straight from a research point of view.
But what of the possibility of visiting an actual circle, instead of just looking at an aerial photograph? The Wiltshire museum also hosts the Crop Circle Access Centre, which is a mobile app informing on the latest formations & which ones are open to the public; it also seeks to compensate farmers whose field has had the ‘fortune’ of being chosen by the crop circle makers, paying them a portion of the money raised through the passes —field owners in other countries would wish to be so lucky…
Over the years my personal opinion on the matter of crop circles has changed substantially. Back in the late 80’s & early 90’s I was convinced these ‘agro-glyphs’ represented tangible evidence of some sort of communication with a non-human intelligence; now I side with the notion that the great majority of the circles are created by clandestine artists, who prefer to remain anonymous as much to avoid legal repercussions, as to infuse their creations with the necessary amount of mystique.
And yet that doesn’t make those circles ‘hoaxes’ in my mind, nor does it mean some subtle interaction with an external influence is not occurring; a lot of the makers admit to sometimes feel ‘compelled’ to choose a particular design or location for reasons beyond their understanding, or sometimes report odd happenings while they are flattening the wheat using the infamous ‘planking method’ popularized by (the equally infamous) ‘Doug & Dave.’
Whichever the case, if you happen to have the chance to visit Wiltshire this summer, you might want to stop by at the museum, and perhaps write for us a review.
[Hat tip to Andreas Müller]
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