Ecological experts and artists from around the globe presented innovative science-integrated art projects at SCI-ART, a symposium which hosted discussion on the climate crisis at the Ottawa Art Gallery from April 6 to 7.
Open to the general public, the event sold out with more than 1,000 attendees and aimed to pique curiosity and transcend differences through dialogue.
In addition to the many interdisciplinary projects on display, the symposium also hosted multiple panels discussing issues at the intersection of art, science and technology, including the climate crisis.
“I approach art like a citizen scientist, observing, experimenting and documenting the world,” Ottawa visual artist and panel speaker Valérie Chartrand said. “I make material choices that are ecological and conceptually related to my explorations and I take an embodied and gentle approach with insects for all of my projects.”
Projects blended art, science and technology, urging collaborators to explore a subject from an artistic and a scientific perspective simultaneously.
The Climate Rebels: Artists on the Frontlines of Change, a panel composed of several artists and scientists from around the world, presented original perspectives on the climate crisis.
Chartrand collaborated with Heather Kharouba, a conservation scientist and professor at the University of Ottawa, on a project showcasing the decline of insect populations due to climate change.
Chartrand said collaboration between artists and scientists is important to demonstrate the necessity of climate conservation endeavours.
“We want to encourage a model where artists are working alongside [science] students — where we’re inspiring one another with our research,” Chartrand said.
For Kharouba, art is a way to engage the public in complex scientific issues like the climate crisis.
“As conservation scientists, we really have a responsibility to translate the research or the work that we do into actionable solutions,” Kharouba said.
“We really try to engage, whenever we can, in conversations with the public to share our work, even if it’s in development, to increase the accessibility of science and empower individuals to take action in their own lives.”
Their joint presentation offered a holistic and inclusive view of the complex issue of climate change.
Kharouba and Chartrand encouraged people to step outside of their expertise and beyond the habitual constraints of their discipline to seek knowledge about the climate crisis.
Grace Kim-Shin, a third-year political science student at uOttawa, was in the audience for Chartrand and Kharouba’s presentation and praised the interdisciplinary approach to climate action.
“I think what really stood out was how art can be used as a communication channel to raise awareness on different issues,” Kim-Shin said. “I think it’s really interesting to see new fields or new intersections between art and science emerge.”
Audience member Jeremy Doucette, a graduate student at uOttawa, felt the panel was successful in encouraging people from non-science backgrounds to participate in climate activism.
“You don’t need to be anything special,” Doucette said. “It can be anyone.”
The SAW centre, producers of SCI-ART, are also hosting an exibit titled Driving in Palestine at Club SAW in Ottawa until May 18.
Featured image by Amel Amrouche/the Charlatan
