Lucia Pietroiusti, Curator of General Ecology at The Serpentine in London, says,
“The more I spend time with the practice of ecological thinking, the more I realize that one solution or a one-toned approach is just not the answer. I am driven by the fact that it is becoming quite clear now that we are a little bit past the point of any sort of realistic reversal of the effects of climate disaster. Because of that, I am attached to the idea that you need pluralistic voices.”
She goes on to say,
“My great hope would be for every art institution to have an ecology department. It does not necessarily have to be someone like me who talks about plants, but it should be someone who looks at institutional strategy and environment at the same time, at how this institution relates to others, and how it sits within its urban landscape.”
and,
“There is a necessity to open up the disciplines so that we can face giant considerations like climate change. If departments do not collaborate, then everyone is just seeing things through a small keyhole. What would it mean to operate an institution as a permaculture, and less like a monoculture? I am really obsessed with the fact that metaphors are real and that you can move between the metaphoric and the literal in your program. When you do that, that’s when you start to see things differently.”
There are organisations exploring what this means in their own contexts including several significant ones in Scotland, including The Stove in Dumfries, North Light Arts in Dunbar, Creative Carbon Scotland, and there is a bit of a cluster in Aberdeenshire with SSW, Deveron Projects, and The Barn.
The Barn, in working with the pioneering ecological artists, Helen Mayer Harrison (1927-2018) and Newton Harrison (b.1932) to develop a vision for Scotland, On the Deep Wealth of this Nation, Scotland, have raised the stakes for the cultural sector’s involvement with these issues.
Read the whole interview on ArtNet
Thanks for this, Chris. I had not seen the Artnet article. Do you happen to have Lucia’s e mail? Best, Clive
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Hi! My name is Rosyida. I am PhD candidate at one of the local university in Malaysia. I would like to get in the circle to expand my research in the same area. How do I get in any of the program organize, which relate to art and climate change. Thank you
Hi The review will go live on ecoartscotland in a little while. I think it’s all good, but I’m happy to pick up any edits … Thanks for all your help, Rebecca, John, Anne and Mark. BTW I’m happy for Rebecca/Ikon and The Barn to lead on social media – I’ll repost if you tag @ecoartscotland Chris