[scorched]
adjective

UK  /skɔːtʃt/  US  /skɔːrtʃt/

slightly burned, or damaged by fire or heat

Up to 46 degrees Celsius (114F) in Spain, 38 degrees Celsius (100F) in Paris, 50 degrees Celsius (122F) in multiple Arabian countries... Highest temperature ever recorded in June in various places in Western Europe, same for July 1... Prolonged heatwave in the USA, temperatures around 40 degrees Celsius (104F) in major cities in Southeast Asia...

While the ice caps are melting and the oceans and seas are warming and being robbed, polluted and poisoned, also on land the humans leave a trace of destruction. Or perhaps better to say, that's where the misery begins. Because that's where humans have settled and do most of their 'ingenuity'.

The Western world should really be called the 'world of never enough'.
There where overconsumption was born. At the same time as growth for growth's sake and the 'creation of shareholder value' were invented. In other words, profits that are never high enough.
Our addiction to money is so strong, that we are prepared to exhaust the earth for it. To destroy plants and animals and to make the world of the children and grandchildren of humanity dry. And flooded. And hot. In many places even unbearably hot. 

Many people even think (still!) that the consequences of global warming will not be too bad. After all, most of the earth (read: Western World) is still a nice place to live. And we are smart, a technical solution will be found that will allow us to continue living the way we are used to...

Meanwhile on the already scorched earth...

...larger and larger parts of the earth are being scorched. Scorching by the ever-increasing temperatures. By spraying poison to make the yield of intensive agriculture as high as possible. And by the emission of poison and pollution into the air, land and water as a by-product of our endless consumption. Scorched by the fires that rage around the world day in and day out as a result of increasing drought. And by fires started by humans to turn even more nature into monoculture with endless fields of genetically engineered crops on exhausted, diseased soil. Crops that can and will only reach maturity if they are generously sprayed with all kinds of pesticides.

" Drought, climate-related outbreaks of bark beetle, wildfire and tree mortality from extreme heat are ravaging Europe’s woodlands on top of pressure from forestry. Across the EU, the amount of carbon absorbed by its land each year fell by about a third between 2010 and 2022, according to the latest research, endangering the continent’s climate target. "

" ....  the planet’s oceans, forests, soils and other natural carbon sinks absorb about half of all human emissions.

But as the Earth heats up, scientists are increasingly concerned that those crucial processes are breaking down.

In 2023, the hottest year ever recorded, preliminary findings by an international team of researchers show the amount of carbon absorbed by land has temporarily collapsed. The final result was that forest, plants and soil – as a net category – absorbed almost no carbon. "

Did this recover in 2024? No, although it was slightly less severe in that year.

Disclaimer

What I try to achieve with my climate and earth crisis inspired art and blog posts, is to paint a realistic picture of the state of the earth. Based on scientific publications, measurements and observations and common sense. Not colored by political considerations, profit, greed, excessive unfounded positivism or doomsday thinking, or conspiracy theories….

'A Scorched Earth' is an artwork in my collection 'Secret Places'.

Sometimes you just have to go outside, look up at the sky and scream really loud...

A cry for climate action...

Real climate action, not by accounting to zero, not by supposedly “green” facilitating that we continue to consume more and more. Real climate action is ensuring that humanity lives within the limits set by the Earth's resources and her capacity to support everything that lives.

General info on this artwork

The artwork 'A Scorched Earth' is a digital transformation of a photograph. Printed on order with high-quality ink on museum-quality, acid-free cotton/rag paper (Hahnemühle Photo Rag® 308gsm). The work comes in a limited edition of 10, signed and with a certificate of authenticity. But of course, it is also available as Open Edition print, without signature and not numbered. Available in any size you desire !

Maximum size is 150Wx150H cm / 60Wx60H inches, any size available up to that maximum. So please let me know the size you would prefer.

I start with one or more photographs made by myself to create these artworks. Then I use digital painting, color adjusting and adding and transforming multiple artistic textures and effects. I do this until there is a surreal atmosphere that touches me and tells the story I want to tell you.

Prints of are available in my Saatchi Art portfolio at the artwork page. But of course I can upload any other size. Or contact me for a quote, prices starting at €55 / US$60.

And of course available in any size you desire !

And here are some more artworks in the Secret Places collection you might like:

ALL WE NEED IS LESS CONSUMING

Through my artworks I ask you to reflect for a moment on the nature around you, on the beautiful feeling that nature can evoke. Thus to think about your actions to support the wellbeing of the earth and everything that lives on it. And on what humanity loses when many of us continue on the destructive path of ever more greed and consuming. And please, reflect on how you can survive in this rapidly changing world…

So do you want to know your ecological footprint? 

Then visit this website: https://www.footprintcalculator.org/home/en 

And do you want to reduce your ecological footprint?

Then ask me, I will help you. For free. Or simply visit my website and choose in the menu for Your Footprint.

And if you appreciate my writings and art and want to support me, you can buy me a piece of fruit here: https://ko-fi.com/jacobberghoef, thank you 🍏 !

So are you interested in more? Then read what I wrote about System Change, Man's impact on the earth, Organic Change, Regenerative Agriculture, Regeneration