Artistic Output for Nature's Impact on Artistic Creations: Relational, Experiential Artistic Approach to Environmentalism
Key terms and tags: Ecological art (Ecoart), Environmental relationship, Nature Connectedness, Relational Art, Nature and Urban Green Space
Artist: Jennifer Qian, Master Student at NYU Gallatin
In the following sections, I created artistic output following a relational, experiential approach inspired by environmental artists that I interviewed. Nature has a positive impact in artistic creation in providing calmness, openness during the creative process especially during ideation and incubation phases.
These three projects aim at extending the established existing experiential art that encourage nature connectedness and mindfulness. To further extend the established work in the art fieldI interviewed three interdisciplinary artists who feature nature, connections of human and environment as a big part of their work. I considered all of them practicing the eco-phenomenological approach which ignites raw and pure aesthetic human experience of nature that people can relate to and generate positive emotion and pleasure when interacting with nature.
The Moss Drawer
Intent
How would a drawerful of moss complicate my relationship in urban NYC apartment to the nature beauty of nature and the connectedness of nature? I want to have a live art installation representing biology and nature. I want to play around with the location and time bound memories and objects like Catskill based moss. I harvest and preserve moments in time and pay attention to how nature is beautiful and artful as well as my intimate relationship with the moss and plants that I harvested. They used to live in the wilderness of Catskill Mountain now they live in an acrylic drawer in my New York City apartment. Due to the optimal photosynthesis, temperature, humidity and inclusiveness of the acrylic drawer, it became an semi-enclosed ecosystem where the water I originally put in the soil evaporates and liquidizes on the top surface or the drawer then rains back down to the soil. Since May I haven't had to water the drawer.
Description
In May 2021 I went to Wydham, NY in the Catskills Mountain for a retreat. During the retreat my friends and I not only shared purposeful meals, we also explored the wilderness full of fugai, decayed wood where I captured sound. I want to harvest the natural wilderness such as moss, fern and other leaves that are unique to the climate of Catskill and bring the Catskill to my New York City apartment.
Process and Documentation
My friends and I were wandering in the wilderness collecting sounds of nature, birds, stepping on to the grass, moss and wood. One of my friends has a PhD in insects and used to study plants and he pointed out unique species of moss and ferns to the area. With his help and no harm to nature, we picked up a piece of fresh moss, a piece of fern leaf and carried it by hand to the house we were staying in. We then laid the moss and leaves flat, letting it air out for a few hours. Then the greens were transferred carefully into bags and stored in the refrigerator to keep it moist. After I arrived back in my apartment in New York City I obtained an acrylic box and pulled out a drawer and deployed layers of soil with moisture into the acrylic drawer. The moss and leaves were transferred onto the new soil. I sprayed some mineral water to keep it moist then put the drawer into the box. I used to grow light during rainy and gloomy days to encourage photosynthesis. But most of the time I just leave the drawer in the acrylic box on my windowsill.
Traveling Rocks
Intent
Rocks represent part of land, and carry an identity to a climate and landscape. Rocks don’t move but humans do. In this project, I am extending beyond experiment 1 (location and time and ephemeral) challenging the perception of “what moves” and making the rocks travel with me. The traveling rocks also represent my emotion traveling in the pandemic as I was visiting my family on the West Coast for the first time since the pandemic.
Process and Documentation
The rocks are coated with my identity and I am bringing the rocks from a residential backyard of Las Vegas Nevada to Laguna Beach (CA), Seven Magic Mountains art installation (NV), Red Rock Canyon (NV), Delta Airline, Barbershop, Charlotte Airport, Charleston (SC) and to New York City. I documented the process of rock collection, painting, traveling, setting up the temperature rock sculpture blending in with the environment as well as human interaction with the rocks both from artist and audience perspective.
Process: The art making process took 2 months as I was traveling from my home in Las Vegas then to visit my grandpa in California and then to Charleston, SC back to New York city. My aunt’s friend owns many rocks in her backyard and her husband makes rock sculptures in his leisure time. She let me pick whatever rocks I wanted and I collected around 15 pieces that vary in weight, shape, color and texture. Then I painted the rocks using the leftover house paint in color Sage using various methods. During my rock painting process I try to be immersed in the environment of heat which is around 116 degrees in the Las Vegas desert. I tried to paint each rock focusing on features that I want to highlight so each of them are different. I carried the rocks around and when I travel to an area I would have the rocks experience my travel just like I do. I quickly assess the environment then set up the balancing rocks knowing it would only last for a short amount of time. I tried to pay close attention to the rocks being part of the landscape. My art making process itself is playful and a relational art as its own as well because when I balance the rocks I am in public space, my act attracts many people to stop by and ask me questions.
One of the highlights that I consider representing relational aesthetics is when I was setting up the rock stacks at the famous outdoor art installation by artist Ugo Rondinone, Seven Magic Mountains. Both my Traveling Rocks and Seven Magic Mountain installations are made of cairns. Three separate groups of visitors took in front of my Traveling Rocks and took photos of them and posted them on Instagram.
Shades of Desert
Intent
Though this project carries the same relational and experiential approach, it is environmentally centric and site specific. However, Las Vegas is known for its heat and desert climate. I want to immerse myself and become part oooOszw2qsxzf the environment. I want to highlight the anonymousness of human features in the dance video and the photography so most of my face is covered by desert shades of silk fabric that I obtained from Fabscrap, a New York based fabric recycling company. I want the audience to relate themself so my identity is human and anyone, everyone. I want to draw the attention of looking into nature through the lens of a sand storm which can be caused by air pollution and climate change.
Description
The project is multimedia and interdisciplinary in nature. From what I wear to my movement, they are site specific but spontaneous as the filming of my dance movement is filmed at the Red Rock Canyon.
Process
I obtained the silk fabric before my trip to Las Vegas in June 2021. I used two shades of organic silk fabric to highlight the severity of the sand storm. I have been to the Red Rock Canyon many times since I grew up in Las Vegas. I knew the center platform would allow me to dance freely with the backdrop of cocks and greens. As I was dancing I allowed myself to move freely and allow myself to truly feel and express the heat and dryness of the environment. I filmed myself continuously for 5 minutes then switched to photography.
