Artist Panel Discussion Video: https://youtu.be/mUI_WMw82Nk
(Note 1:) Dear reader,
The following is temporarily under construction (as i edit). I wanted to expand upon some of these points, and link them to the proper resources and inspiration. Even the morning of the panel talk, I realize that I also want to confront the issue of 1.) Geo engineering, and 2.) the billionaires with problematic ambitions to colonize space, or have a backup plan to Earth. This is an important topic because it is indicative of a kind of escapism, and in a society of unbridled capitalism a hypocritical attitude that capitalism will then rescue us.
I also want to dig into the damage and injustice caused by the Fossil Fuel Industry on many fronts, and the very recently unfolding saga of Project 2025- and by extension the Trump admin and DOGE.
If this all makes you curious , I ask that you consider joining my mailing list, and then I will send an email when this bonus material is in finished form. Here’s a link to sign up to my mailing list: https://zacharyskinner.com/join-newsletter
(Note 2:) Thank you for visiting the Panel Talk for 'Home Is Where The Heart Is' at Garrison Art Center! I was asked to speak about what led me to do the work I do. It was tempting to look at moments or experiences from my life that may have nudged me toward the current work I do. But I felt that was missing the mark somehow. I have had countless personally touching, even formative moments in the landscape, and grew up outdoors, etc. But as I recalled these moments- I realized I was just seeing the white clouds passing overhead through the sky. What felt real though, was the massive storm- the one that has been building for decades. That is why I started my talk with Silent Spring. For those willing to look and confront the truth; from activists to scientists, all feel the deep-exhausted-ache as if from screaming into the vacuum of space, for the stories and facts and science have been out there, but the political will and action needed never follows. This is an American Problem, and a Global Problem. The big problems are the backdrop of my work.
Rachel Carson tried to warn us in 1962 in "Silent Spring". She spoke about the beauty of the American landscape, and then she tells the story about it being poisoned by humans, and how ecosystems breakdown because of pollution, greed and ignorance.
-Can we all agree that it sounds eerily like the predicament we’re in today 63 years later? Why?
(Extended)
-Is the violence we do to the lands so Slow and Subtle that we don't recognize it? That question lives in my Heart. Rob Nixon's book "Slow Violence, and the Environmentalism of the Poor" unpacks this question in depth. He coined the phrase Slow Violence which (I'm paraphrasing) is the damage that we do to the land over time, which we are often distracted from grappling with because of more bombastic concerns like war and disasters. And adding my thoughts: perhaps we have been so conditioned by media to consume the quick, exciting stories, that we ignore and delay the slowly-tipping balance of our ecosphere.
This book also outlines several important issues to understand related to Environmental Justice and Pollution. It explores the nexus of pollution and money, power, progress, war, the displacement and forced proximity of disenfranchised populations (often minority and indigenous communities).
In my artist talk, I mentioned a practice to slow-down, and look deeply for trash (Trash Cleanup Meditation- here's that video if interested). One of my takeaways from Slow Violence is that we can also slow-down and look deeply for the slower, subtler forms of violence we do to the land.
-Doug Tallamy, in "Natures Best Hope" talks about the problem of property: we have an unhelpful (even destructive) standard and concept of home. We want bare lawns comprised of green grass. It is even encoded in the zoning laws in many communities. Often we decorate this lawn with selected non-native plants. But these become sterile zones that don't support the local ecosystems they inhabit. The solution, he argues, is to use our private properties to instead create nature-corridors that will support and host wildlife and pollinators. I love this, as it is empowering: we start with where we live, and make it a project to make incremental changes and slowly embrace the larger ecosphere!
-There is growing consensus that we must confront Climate Change. Yet we haven't reached an inflection point. I was chatting with a friend, Andrew, who talked about the failure of storytelling (among other forces) in the Environmental Movement since Silent Spring. He pointed out that in the movement to legalize gay marriage for an example, the country rapidly shifted consensus from a very low percentage of support & awareness, to a very high percentage rapidly (years countable in the single digits). He pointed out that we have been successful only in campaigning to the very insular group of passionate environmentalists. But that it has no traction in comparison to (I'm paraphrasing) the Right-Wing Political campaigns to save the livelihoods of the poor industrial workers with a heroic return to Coal and Fossil Fuels and free-market capitalism where money will trickle down from the Billionaire Class. Separate from my discussion with Andrew, I'll note that Environmentalists are increasingly desperate, seeing that no mainstream attempts have shaken up the Gridlock in the US Government. It seems that meaningful change may require revolution.
-The influence of fossil fuel corporations (which is also Big-Plastic, a petrochemical product), and other powerful corporate interests on politicians contributes to gridlock, and the current administration's policies hinder the fight against climate change here and globally. Actually, that is the understatement of the century- literally. As of the moment of writing this, the T*r*u*m*p Administration is releasing Executive Orders to defund government agencies who research or work to monitor or regulate and enforce any aspect of Climate Change. They want to de-classify Green House Gasses (and even asbestos) as "harmful" to humans, because that means the corporations would be liable for the health harms they cause: carcinogens, pollutants, forever chemicals, superfund sites.
-(Also from Andrew) Let's not forget that 60 years ago we didn't need everything to be wrapped in plastic: we can go back to Glass, and Aluminum- which can be successfully recycled.
-Beyond Plastics, heard of it? https://www.beyondplastics.org/ I reference them in my artist talk. They are a great source for learning about the broken system for recycling plastics, and the connection between Plastics and the Oil/Petrol Industry.
-I wanted to mention Colin Beavan's book & documentary "No Impact Man". The story starts at home, he is a city dweller, and he grapples with a lot of difficult questions and consumption choices we can make to get as close as possible to being more harmonious with the ecosphere- trying to inch towards zero harmful waste, and a smaller footprint.
-I hope we could all agree that ideally we should have a right to shelter, clean air, clean water, and healthy food? Yes? But not here. We must take our own government to court, to protect ourselves and our lands. It’s true, especially in 2025 with a hostile administration.
This is where Earthjustice comes in. They're the battlefront: the environmental lawyers who fight for our planet. They won 85% of the court cases through the first T*r*u*m*p Administration. Check them out if you want to support meaningful environmental protection! That’s why I have been making it a personal initiative recently; when you purchase my artwork, a portion of the sale goes to them. We need them to keep the powerful few in-check. More info about Earthjustice: https://earthjustice.org/
(Above) A recent monotype/drawing which I intended to include in 'Home Is Where The Heart Is, but was left out of the final exhibit design. Here's Desert Hut with Aloe, before the Storm, 2024. See more recent works on paper here: https://zacharyskinner.com/2d-/work-on-paper