Luke Fischer

Some thoughts...

Luke Fischer was born and grew up in Sydney, Australia, a location surrounded by water. As a child he was in love with water and water sports, in particular, swimming, bodyboarding, and windsurfing. More recently he lived for two years in Tubingen, Germany. The Neckar river flows through the picturesque German university town, and streams past the yellow Hölderlin Turm (Hölderlin tower), where the famous poet of the Romantic Era, Friedrich Hölderlin (who wrote numerous poems in celebration of rivers), resided.

Luke has a general interest in the relation between art, nature, and the human world, which is reflected in much of his poetry. Poems treating the intersection of the human and natural world have appeared and/or are forthcoming in the journals ISLE and Avocet. In addition to the tradition of nature poetry, Luke's view of nature is informed by Goethe, Goethean Science, and phenomenological philosophy.

In 2008 Luke completed his PhD in Philosophy through the University of Sydney, Australia. The theme of his doctoral dissertation is a phenomenological interpretation of the poetry of Rainer Maria Rilke, and Rilke's perception of nature forms a major focus of this work. Currently he is revising his dissertation for publication as a book.

The human built environment can either enhance or hinder our relationship to the natural world. A beautifully built bridge or an outdoor amphitheatre can enliven our sense of place and our awareness of the surroundings: the sky, a river, the topography of hills. However, many aspects of modern cities produce the opposite effect; the various forms of pollution (visual, aural etc.) cut us off from the life of natural phenomena. In these cases the human environment is both a symbol and a cause of our estrangement from nature.

Whether in the future the human world will be in harmony or discord with the natural world is ultimately dependent on the kind of relationship we cultivate with nature. Luke's work in the areas of poetry and philosophy seeks to develop a deeper insight into natural phenomena and in this way resonates with the aims of SENSRI.

For the past couple of years, Philadelphia, USA, has been Luke's main place of residence. The Schuylkill river runs through the city of Philadelphia. With the above words serving as a background, the poem can be left to speak for itself.