Is there a
horizon in the
deep water by
HeHe (2011).
Miniature
performance of
the 2010 Gulf of
Mexico oil spill.
Image courtesy
the artist.
Since the production of “Invisible Breath,”
Invisible Dust’s repertoire has expanded to
topics beyond air pollution. However, Invisible
Dust continues to produce works that respond
to issues which need to be discussed. While the
concept of environmental art may be emergent
from a clichéd tree-hugging sort of environmentalism that was more relevant 40 years ago
than it is today, artists commissioned by Invisible Dust retain a high level of social relevancy,
symbiotically contributing to research in the
respective fields of science they are speaking to.
A recent commission in-progress for Invisible Dust is the implementation of artist Eve
Mosher’s HighWaterLine in Bristol. Originally a
project based in New York City, HighWaterLine
began as a thick chalk line, drawn across a span
of 70 miles of coastline. In 2007, the line was
drawn at the 10 foot above sea level contour
line; these areas were subsequently flooded due
to Hurricane Sandy in 2012. A witty jab at what
it really means to integrate ecological thinking into urban design (as opposed to planning
for more green space or parks), HighWaterLine
became a model for coastal communities. The
project was also implemented in Miami in 2013.
Located in southern England, on the Avon River, the city of Bristol faced substantial flooding
SciArt in America June 2014
this past winter. It is easy to see how Mosher’s
nearly psychic ability in predictions of rising
water levels may benefit the future of policy
making and ecological action for the region.
What emerges as most significant about
the projects hosted by Invisible Dust is the
simplification of data to a tangible scale, communicating from a platform that is capable of
motivating human empathy, interest, and action for environmental health. The work of the
organization is transdisciplinary, as it transcends
prescribed disciplinary boundaries to foster
solutions for issues that can only be addressed
by collaboration between disciplines. It is so
often the case in the sciart world that only art
benefits from the collaboration, or only science.
However, with the model employed by Invisible
Dust it becomes clear that the relationship is
symbiotic, working as its own ecological model.
By acting as facilitators and catalysts with other
established organizations with similar interests,
the organization exhibits a symbiosis that can
add value and a wider audience to its projects.
Invisible Dust creates a network of forwardthinking, better supported, and more informed
individuals to make critical decisions regarding
policy, design, and human existence on Earth.
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