April 19 2002, Friday, 10am-5.50pm

"TURBULENT LANDSCAPES" EXHIBITION OPENS AT LONDON'S NATURAL HISTORY MUSEUM WITH EXHIBITS BY NED KAHN: ARTISTIC AND SCIENTIFIC SCULPTOR WITH COMMISSIONS IN GERMANY, JAPAN, SWITZERLAND AND U.S. 

If you ever wanted to know how a sand dune is created or how a cloud forms, then "Turbulent Landscapes" is the exhibition to see. Many will be going along to literally, 'Play with the forces of nature...' There are many exhibits to view and we particularly liked the "Aeolian Landscape" (i.e. sand dune formation) and "Chaotic Pendula." The exhibit that seemed to get most attention - and seemed the most impressive, when it got spinning, was the one showing how a Tornado is formed. We noted four photographers, one with hands waving, trying to get the columns of air to twirl. We interviewed Ned Kahn - the principal exhibit artist, who was over from California, where he is based. He designed the three exhibits we mentioned above, along with other exhibits around the large room. Kahn, who sees himself as both a scientist and artist has been doing such creative designs for many years. As a child he had always been interested in nature, ponds, streams etc., and the life they contained. In his native New York he used to visit many places - like scrap yards - where he could get his hands on industrial "junk", ball-bearings, etc. These same hands would later bring life to mechanical sculptures, that he got to move, change, etc., into something educational and interesting.
 

Yahoo headquarters in California hosts one of his many commissions: namely a large cube, with many smaller cubes within it, that reacts to wind. And what about the artist that had most influenced him? 'Your Andy Goldsworthy', was his immediate reply. As for the future, a Zurich outdoor park will soon see one of his impressive and educational creations. We wait with anticipation to see if it will be a match for the impressiveness of the geyser in another Swiss city, Geneva. But getting back to the turbulent landscapes on view. The other creators, whose exhibits are on display and listed here - within brackets, are Michael Brown (Single Drop), Douglas Hollis (Vortex), Shawn Lani (Spring Box), Skip Sweeney (Video Feedback) and Gail Wight (A Tale of Two Slimes). Admission to the museum is free, but there is a modest £5 admission to see all the exhibits within "Turbulent Landscapes", until it closes in the middle of September. The price includes an English-language audio guide. About the rest of the museum, there is a new-look information kiosk in the Central Hall that provides information about the Museum in an impressive 12 languages: English, French, German, Spanish, Italian, Hindi, Turkish, Greek, Polish, Arabic, Welsh and Japanese. Location: Natural History Museum, Cromwell Road, London, SW7. Tube station: South Kensington (Piccadilly, Circle and District lines).