2023 Changing Climate Residency- Santa Fe Artist Institute
The McKnight Artist Residencies Consortium
“The climate crisis is also a crisis of culture, and thus of imagination.”
–Amitav Ghosh
The 2023 International Thematic Residency, Changing Climate, addresses the most critical issue of our time. For the Changing Climate residency, SFAI seeks to support artistic exploration, creative activism, and community art actions related to global warming that inspire individual transformation and inform collective action.
My residency at SFAIled me to take my work outdoors and explore the intersection of endangeredspecies and human development. The minimalist architecture of Santa Fe,particularly, the stepped building shapes, served as a significant source ofinspiration as was minimalist art found around Santa Fe, such as New Mexicoartist Alexander Girard and his silhouette designs. This visual influence ledme to create large minimalist animal cut-outs of New Mexico’s endangered andthreatened species integrated with basic shapes that wrapped around or nestledwithin a corner of buildings. The intent was to highlight the fragmentation andshrinking of natural habitats available to wildlife. Visualization includedpushing the image in or wrapping shapes around tight corner spaces.
I also spent time at the MAKE SantaFe facilities using the laser cutter and sewing room to begin some fabricpieces to be later realized in northern Minnesota forests. Also, I documentednative plants on hikes and began to create multiple folded paper series ofthese plants.