art in the anthropocene: the potential for art as a vehicle for transformation
article by jared spears
as London convened, the magnitude of the global crisis cannot be overstated. the U.N.’s IPCC report as given the world 12 years to dramatically reduce carbon emissions for even a chance of staving off the most catastrophic heating scenarios. that clock is ticking, and signs of strain — sea level rise, intensified storms and wildfires, desertification, political instability and refugee movements — are already manifest. fundamental transformation of global economic systems is now required — that is, if rapid man-made extinction and biodiversity loss doesn’t wreck food systems first
in the face of the twin crises of climate change and ecosystem collapse, and in light of the profound systemic societal changes these crises demand, it’s worth asking: what role does art have to play in climate and ecological action?
the science is clear, and governments have an array of measures as their disposal to halt global heating and begin addressing its symptomatic effects. as a spokesperson for the U.N. IPCC report observed, however, “the final tick box is political will.” given the insufficiency of government responses — which range from dithering and delay to outright denial — what’s called for are social and political movements
what can art achieve that can’t be more effectively handled by direct action, dissemination of facts, and rational argument?
artist Olafur Eliasson held a major exhibition of his work at the Tate Modern. Eliasson’s name has attained global preeminence in discussion of climate-minded artwork. his iconic Ice Watch, a series of human-scale installations in which melting ice sculptures are arranged in public spaces, has had several incarnations across European cities. art interventions like Ice Watch contribute to a necessary raising of the alarm, quite literally bringing a far-off reality of global warming and thrusting it into the paths of peoples’ daily life. so long as the need for such confrontations persists, this type of creative intervention into public life remain important in shifting public discourse. confronting such art in-person offers a means of cutting through tired discourse to engage sense-perception at a direct level
increasingly, public majorities in the uk already acknowledge the reality of man-made global warming. consensus of the climate crisis’ existence is not the only issue. looking ahead with urgency to the next hurdle, the problem of political will remains
all in all, this article addresses the necessity of art in such a critical time in our existence. it is seemingly more of a political fight, a fight for a change in societal norms at the top of the social hierarchy