Category: Uncategorized
Post Normal Art
March 13, 2013by Frances Whitehead
"All that was ‘normal’ has now evaporated; we have entered postnormal times, the in-between period where old orthodoxies are dying, new ones have not yet emerged, and nothing really makes sense… We will have to imagine ourselves out of postnormal times—with an ethical compass and a broad spectrum of imaginations from the rich diversity of human cultures."
- Ziauddin Sadar, Welcome to Postnormal Times, 2009
So prevalent are the terms “post” and “post-normal” as signifiers for the shifting ground of contemporary thought, that we must ask: “What is post-normal art?”
Thomas Kuhn’s term “paradigm shift” has entered…
March 1, 2013
Below is the information about our upcoming conference, a large part of this planning project. Online registration is available here!
Beyond the Surface: Environmental Art in Action
Hosted by the Schuylkill Center for Environmental Education
May 31, 2013
[caption id="attachment_803" align="alignleft" width="260"] Stacy Levy, Pier 53[/caption]
Join us for a day of ideas and innovative thinking, investigating relationships between art and nature.
Conference Description
How can environmental art engage the environment and the individual, activate awareness, and integrate perspectives that result in unexpected and innovative approaches to environmental literacy?
While the natural world has captured the imagination of artists for…
Time Frames
February 11, 2013by Sam Bower 2013
Standing in the woods near the pond at the Schuylkill Center, we can look out and see a range of time scales. The brown and golden leaves under our feet from the Fall- the leftovers of a year's work by the trees above us. Perhaps there's snow still on the ground from a recent storm, itself the result of the vast cycles of evaporation off the ground and from lakes and oceans into the atmosphere and clouds and back down again. Some of the trees around us are decades, maybe hundreds of years old. Frogs and…
Ecological Design Thinking
January 25, 2013by Jenny Sabin
Figure 1 - Sabin's myThread Pavilion for NYC Nike FlyKnit Collective; featuring a responsive Whole Garment knitted structure; image courtesy of Nike Inc.
Sustainable building practices should not simply be technical endeavors. They should include the transformation of existing built fabric into sustainable models that inspire both positive socio-cultural change and innovation in design, science, art and technology. Professor and architect, Michael Hensel at a recent symposium hosted by the Department of Architecture at Cornell University titled Sustaining Sustainability, underscored this notion (see full review by Sabin in The Architectural Review Issue #1381, March 2012). The symposium…
Making Room for Rain
December 27, 2012By Stacy Levy
The Schuylkill Center for Environmental Education is working to investigate the intersection of nature and the city. The role of rain in the landscape is being actively explored in programs and planning around its buildings. As a nature center, SCEE is at the forefront of solving site issues through art based intervention. On May 31, 2013 a conference on New Environmental Art will be held at SCEE to look at ways that art and science can collaborate to solve ecological problems in urban nature, and enlighten citizens to find new solutions in their own lives.
Rain is…
Art/ist Roles
December 3, 2012By Eve Mosher
October 29th, Hurricane Sandy made landfall. The eye of the storm passed over New Jersey but the hurricane winds, and worse, a massive storm surge hit New York City. The storm surge, combined with high tides and sea level rise created a superstorm that sent waters rushing into the coastal areas of New York.
As images of the floods began to circulate, I got a sense of eerie familiarity. The debris line near the 14th street power station (where an explosion knocked out power for lower Manhattan for almost a week), the flooded Battery Tunnel entrance in…
Effective Art
November 14, 2012By Lillian Ball
There is an innovative category of artist that confirms the many ways art can do more than mirror the state of our culture, or current events. These artists are committed to working in ways that actually change how the world works in addition to the ways we might perceive the world.
The diverse art projects I am fascinated with cover a wide range of disciplines. Social practice or public interaction is often a vital component. These international artists are doing more than merely talking about "relational aesthetics". Ecological systems are inherently relational with great potential for embedded aesthetics.…
Hear from Our Team!
October 18, 2012
By Jenny Laden
Now it's time to hear from our team ! Here they are, discussing our planning project, the art program’s goals, and what makes The Schuylkill Center unique. Our Advisory team is collectively committed to progressive collaboration in art and science, and after our time together have a sincere fondness for the site and the program.
Moving forward, we will be sharing some thoughts and ideas from the team members themselves in the coming weeks. In the meantime, watch these smart amazing people, and join in our Walk in the Woods.
Special thanks to Mangrove Media for their…
Advisory Team Meets at Schuylkill Center
September 17, 2012By Jenny Laden
On August 16th and 17th, SCEE hosted seven Advisory Team Members to visit our center and assist in the re-visioning of the Art Program's direction. As part of the Pew Philadelphia Exhibition Initiative's Planning Grant, the Team was invited to convene over the two days to discuss the Center's opportunities, challenges and help craft a clear vision for the direction of the Art department at SCEE. Learn about the team here. Visiting us over the meeting were Deenah Loeb, SCEE board member and Art Committee chair, and Mary Salvante, founder and former Director of the Art Program.
Over…
Letter from Director of Environmental Art
August 14, 2012By Jenny Laden, Director of Environmental Art
Let’s begin with Joseph Beuys.
An environmentalist before that was a word. I keep returning to his project 7000 Oaks
for its smart, simple answer to the problem of deforestation. Beuys was an artist who believed in action, in collaboration, in innovation and in the deep, enormous value of the natural world. He used humor, research and the power of community to create iconic works which spawned a generation of artists who both raise awareness and find solutions. Let’s discuss solutions. The focus of environmental art practice tends to be about problems –…
