Introduction

Whether Jason deCaires’ ghostly statues emerging from the Thames, Chris Jordan’s abstract photographs of mass consumption, Siobhan Davies’ choreographed response to a trip to the High Arctic, Maya Lin’s multimedia contemplation of the loss of Earth’s biodiversity, or the director Christopher Nolan’s dystopic depiction of a race for a replacement Earth in Interstellar, climate change and its looming ramifications have inspired diverse artistic responses. Some seek to motivate action. Others are processing the emotional weight of the challenges that face us. Still others wish to call attention to the impact on vulnerable populations and communities of color, or to use their work to educate, build community, and create strategies for action and resilience.

This website was created, and is annually updated, by participants in the Foresight Prep @ Oberlin College high school summer program, Artistic Responses to Climate Change. More than “art as activism,” the seminar encourages students to engage in a multifaceted dialogue with the material, themselves, each other, and the audience for the work they produce.