Chilling Climates:
In "Chilling Climates", two urgent and contemporary concerns are addressed: The change of our climate and the refugee crisis. This interactive installation serves as an encouragement to reflect on the influence we as human beings have on all living matter occupying this rich planet.
Unaware at first, visitors will playfully kick away the leaves, revealing white lines underneath. This sparks curiosity, prompting them to continue, and as more leaves are cleared, these white lines take shape, forming a figure. Reality sets in when the outline beneath the leaves reveals the chilling crime scene silhouettes of toddlers, eliciting a profound emotional response.
Now aware that they have stepped upon the toddlers’ crime-outlines, a rake stands by, offering the visitor choices. What will they do? Stay standing amongst this crime scene? Step over or around the toddler outlines? Do they cover them with leaves and move on, or do they choose to ignore them and turn their backs? Are they willing to be a part of the problem, or will they strive to be part of the solution? Is the visitor capable of altering their path?
In September of 2015, Alan Kurdi was found drowned. The picture of this lifeless toddler moved the world, and we said “never again!”. Nearly a decade later, people are still dying in their desperate attempts to reach safety. Hundreds of children have died since the day that Alan drowned. We had said, “Never Again”, and yet look at where we are now. Look at what we’ve become.
Alan Kurdi’s silhouette outlines the crime of neglect and indifference.
Around the field of fallen leaves stand towering wooden panels, with their cracked surfaces crafted from pottery-clay, utilising a late mediaeval craquelure technique. These serve as a poignant reminder of the impact of climate change, a force that knows no political borders or discrimination; it endangers all human life equally. The gilding is a testimonial for the abundance and richness this unique world generously harbours for us. In 1970, a picture of Earth from space - a fragile blue marble, suspended in the vastness of the cosmos - pierced the collective conscience, much like the image of Alan Kurdi in 2015.
This image had ignited a global environmental movement, echoing with the promise to “never” neglect Earth’s well-being. And yet, half a century later, the scars on Earth’s surface have deepened: forests have fallen, oceans choked with plastic, an atmosphere burdened by pollution. Despite countless warnings and pleas for action, we remain entrenched in destructive habits, prioritising short-term gains over the long-term health of our planet. “Never,” we had said, but the Earth cries out in agony as trees shed their leaves too early, as fish fill with plastic, as the air becomes unbreathable; and still, we drown out her pleas with the clamour of human indifference. Look at what we’ve become.