It should make the art world blush to hear a leading arts and environment activist stating that Walmart, followed by Coca-Cola, Unilever and Tescos, have done more than most in dealing with the impact of climate change. But that is exactly the message from Alison Tickell, Director of Julie’s Bicycle at the Arts Council England’s ‘A Low Carbon Future for the Arts?’ consultation meeting in February. ‘Why do we expect moral leadership to come from corporations and science?’ asks Tickell, ‘Surely the meaningful nature of the arts in society puts it in a position to take a lead on climate action?'
It’s a question that is being asked a lot, and this week (20 – 27 March 2010) sees the first Climate Action in Culture and Heritage week (CACH). CACH is not an official diktat, rather an online motivator set up by Bridget McKenzie to take advantage of ‘a coincidence of three events in the UK about museums/heritage/galleries and climate change or environmental sustainability’ [1]
Fern Thomas Owen and Fern Poster Series, 2008
‘Surely the meaningful nature of the arts in society puts it in a position to take a lead on climate action?' Alison Tickell
At the moment I’m just not sure that there is a cohesive action on climate change coming from the arts sector. Yes, things are being said on Twitter, conferences and symposium are taking place, articles are being written, but is there actually a sea change across the sector? I really don’t think there is, not yet anyway.
As Lucy Neal states, this issue is difficult to engage with because it is so vast, the complexity of it makes it hard for people to do anything as they just get overwhelmed by the enormity of the task.
What can the art sector do?
One thing I have heard time and time again is that artists have the ability to communicate these complex and misleading issues to a greater public. This could be the case but should artists become advertising agents for the climate? Why should individual artists shoulder the responsibility and the guilt for affecting changes in attitude and approach? Alison Tickell proposes that by changing the infrastructure so that it is environmentally sustainable, it creates an ecologically sound basis from which ‘the artists [to] do their work. Much of that work will have nothing to do with climate change; some of it might inspire millions to think in a new way about the planet.’ [2]
Peter Finnemore Fountainhead, 2006
What could really make a difference is a sector-wide change. ‘What if the arts as a sector were to become leaders in climate action?’ [3] proposes Liz Forgan, chair of Arts Council England. The arts sector has a complex industrial supply chain and consumes energy, most of which is fossil-fuelled. Alison Tickell demands that we find out what impact this is having on the climate and we don’t just build a strategy to deal with it but we also implement it. The arts could lead the way in climate action, so we don’t have to look to Walmart for our moral leadership on the environment.
'The arts could lead the way in climate action, so we don’t have to look to Walmart for our moral leadership on the environment'
Kai-Oi Jay Yung Sock Exchange, 2009
For arts organisations, many of whom are small, have low incomes and already extract 110% from their employees and volunteers, implementing change will be difficult. Climate action in the office, gallery, theatre, multi-arts venue or studio has concentric circles of complexity. In the centre there are simple actions we can all take – recycling, changing light-bulbs, switching off computers and so on – but as we move outwards the expertise, investment and time become increasingly demanding. For the novice these circles of complexity are barriers too big to comprehend, too daunting to challenge.
Eco-bling
There could then be a tendency to eco-bling [4]; gestural actions that are only skin deep. One of the biggest changes in the visual arts world, and the rest of the arts sector, would be to cut back on travel. With the emphasis on being ‘seen’, having an international reputation, living and working in more than one country, and for ‘international’ often being used as a by word for quality, we have a long way to go in the visual arts to counter the accusation of eco-bling.
Adam Burton Acceptable Answers (greyboards), 2008 - 2009
'One of the biggest changes in the visual arts world, and the rest of the arts sector, would be to cut back on travel'
Furtherfield.org set up a pledge in 2007 ‘We will not fly for art’ to counter the mad dash around Europe instigated by the confluence of the 52nd Venice Biennial, skulptur projekte münster 07, Art 38 Basel and documenta 12 that was nick-named Grand Tour 2007. But artists and curators still feel the pull to travel around the world to see major exhibitions and attend conferences. In the age of broadband internet, we must start to use the technology we have to change how we act. Furtherfield’s Media Art Ecologies programme 2009 – 2012 hopes to ‘increase opportunities for art making and appreciation, critical debate, exchange and participation in emerging ecological media art practices, and the theoretical, political and social contexts they engage; to engender shared visions of other possible worlds.’ [5] FutureEverything this year will present GloNet, a Globally Networked Event which will happen simultaneously in different cities, linked via live feeds over the internet.
Sustainable Futures
Artists do have a big part to play in imagining and creating a sustainable future, however. The presenters at Planetary Breakdown: autonomous infrastructures for a sustainable future (BALTIC, 10 March 2010) [6] showed projects which develop infrastructures that forge new relationships in communities and offer alternative methods of living and working that exist outside of mainstream capitalism. Kate Rich’s project Feral Trade sets up a supply chain for a working café using physical social networks to move products across the world. Going straight to the supplier and cutting out the middle-man, the full cause and effect of what we consume can be seen as she openly declares the path of the product on the Feral Trade website. London Fieldworks’ ‘Outlandia’(2008) is an off-grid artist residency centre in the Highlands, built with local materials and labour. There are many more such projects, and many instances where the life of the artist becomes blurred with the work that they make, so much so that the projects stop becoming their art and start being their way of life.
Kate Rich, 'Feral Trade Cafe', at Tyneside Cinema, Newcastle, 2010
Food served at 'Feral Trade Cafe', Tyneside Cinema, Newcastle, 2010
Alison Tickell declares this is an exciting time to be alive. Yes it is complex, at times it is disheartening, but we have the opportunity to make a massive difference, and let’s not just think about it as a future aim because we are already feeling the effects of climate change.
Climate change is not a sealed issue and if you think the arts sector has meaning then it is essential to respond to this issue. The risk of not acting is too great.
Notes
[1] Bridget McKenzie http://ecoch.wordpress.com/2010/02/14/ecomuseums-week-how-about-it/#comments
[2] Alison Tickell, Long Horizons: An exploration of art and climate change, British Council and Julies Bicycle, 2009
[3] Liz Forgan, speaking at ‘A Low Carbon Future for the Arts’, 25 February, National Theatre, London
[4] Nick Starr, Executive Director, National Theatre, ibid
[5] http://www.furtherfield.org/mediaartecologies.php
[6] Planetary Breakdown: autonomous infrastructures for a sustainable future was a collaboration between Intersections, The Arts Catalyst, AV Festival and BALTIC.
