The Hand Up Project
(1999). Dimensions
variable. Image courtesy
of the artist.
addressed Anthropocene issues over the past
decade. The exhibition showcased a number of
recent works, including a live web feed of The
IndaPlant Project, the Endangered Species Recipe
Book, and a updated version of the Songs We Sing
that I originally created for the Lloyd in Amsterdam.
Upon learning of this honor form Jennifer Joy
Pawlitschek, the AESS Art Director, I started
to consider which pieces that I’ve been working
on that might be relevant to the idea of the Anthropocene. As an artist who works in eco-art,
new media and art and science collaboration,
I’m an oddball in the art world. I make works
that are not aimed at being sold, are extremely
context specific and utilize a wide range of
mediums and technologies. My pieces, which
are the result my preoccupations, may at first
glance not look like a continuous body of work.
In the past, I’ve sort of countered this issue by
typically displaying only one large work per exhibition. However, when I considered the Anthropocene in the context of my work, I looked
around my studio and I realized that everything
I make is directly applicable to this concept.
The degree to which my artwork belongs in this
SciArt in America February 2015
context was really the oddest and most wonderful experience for me at AESS. During this
meeting of environmental studies people, I feel
like I’d finally found my peers.
The association allowed me to assist in curating nine other artists directly onto the environmental studies panels. Two other superb
artist panels, put together by Peter Anderson,
additionally added to the number of really
extraordinary artists who participated in the
conference. The interesting thing about these
artists is that many of them had the exact same
experience that I did at AESS; the feeling that
we had finally found our family in a way that we
never had in the art world.
Kimberly Smith and I are moderating a roundtable panel at this coming symposium on creating a lifetime achievement award in the field of
environmentally focused fine art. We really feel
like it is time to recognize the achievements of
artists who are the forebears of this movement.
View more of Demaray’s work at:
http://www.elizabethdemaray.com/
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