Staring Down the Barrel Of Climate Change
Bloomberg Businessweek|May 11, 2020
Art doesn’t have to be topical to be good. But, like Picasso’s Guernica, much of what’s considered “important” art does grapple with contemporary events. Even as the globe battles the Covid-19 pandemic, cataclysmic climate change remains a key threat. These four artists are facing it head-on, not only with lofty sentiment but also with actions large and small
Staring Down the Barrel Of Climate Change

BLANE DE ST. CROIX

From: Boston

Works in: New York

Focus: Ice melt

Blane de St. Croix uses scale models to demystify geopolitical issues: In 2009 he re-created several miles of the U.S.-Mexico border wall in Texas in a 100-foot miniature, “so the public could actually walk it,” he says. Another project mapped the line between Afghanistan and Pakistan in mountainous Tora Bora. Climate change, he says, is “the next border issue.”

Completed in 2009, one of his first works to deal directly with climate change displayed a West Virginia mountain range with its top removed for strip mining as a 40-foot-long, 22-foot-high model. “I scale up my work so people can’t avoid it,” he says. Soon he was receiving grants and going on scientific expeditions to remote corners of the globe. “I had the opportunity to go to Svalbard [Norway] and travel with scientists to be a witness to glaciers that will never be around again,” he says. “I went to the high Arctic in Alaska, where you can stand on the coast and physically watch the permafrost melt away.”

The trips were illuminating and “increased my responsibility,” de St. Croix says. Many experts he met were desperate for people to tell their stories. His art, he realized, could bring broad audiences into the conversation.

This story is from the {{IssueName}} edition of {{MagazineName}}.

Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 9,000+ magazines and newspapers.

This story is from the {{IssueName}} edition of {{MagazineName}}.

Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 9,000+ magazines and newspapers.

MORE STORIES FROM BLOOMBERG BUSINESSWEEKView all
Instagram's Founders Say It's Time for a New Social App
Bloomberg Businessweek US

Instagram's Founders Say It's Time for a New Social App

The rise of AI and the fall of Twitter could create opportunities for upstarts

time-read
4 mins  |
March 13, 2023
Running in Circles
Bloomberg Businessweek US

Running in Circles

A subscription running shoe program aims to fight footwear waste

time-read
3 mins  |
March 20 - 27, 2023
What I Learned Working at a Hawaiien Mega-Resort
Bloomberg Businessweek US

What I Learned Working at a Hawaiien Mega-Resort

Nine wild secrets from the staff at Turtle Bay, who have to manage everyone from haughty honeymooners to go-go-dancing golfers.

time-read
10 mins  |
March 20 - 27, 2023
How Noma Will Blossom In Kyoto
Bloomberg Businessweek US

How Noma Will Blossom In Kyoto

The best restaurant in the world just began its second pop-up in Japan. Here's what's cooking

time-read
3 mins  |
March 20 - 27, 2023
The Last-Mover Problem
Bloomberg Businessweek US

The Last-Mover Problem

A startup called Sennder is trying to bring an extremely tech-resistant industry into the age of apps

time-read
10+ mins  |
March 20 - 27, 2023
Tick Tock, TikTok
Bloomberg Businessweek US

Tick Tock, TikTok

The US thinks the Chinese-owned social media app is a major national security risk. TikTok is running out of ways to avoid a ban

time-read
10+ mins  |
March 20 - 27, 2023
Cleaner Clothing Dye, Made From Bacteria
Bloomberg Businessweek US

Cleaner Clothing Dye, Made From Bacteria

A UK company produces colors with less water than conventional methods and no toxic chemicals

time-read
3 mins  |
March 20 - 27, 2023
Pumping Heat in Hamburg
Bloomberg Businessweek US

Pumping Heat in Hamburg

The German port city plans to store hot water underground and bring it up to heat homes in the winter

time-read
3 mins  |
March 20 - 27, 2023
Sustainability: Calamari's Climate Edge
Bloomberg Businessweek US

Sustainability: Calamari's Climate Edge

Squid's ability to flourish in warmer waters makes it fitting for a diet for the changing environment

time-read
4 mins  |
March 20 - 27, 2023
New Money, New Problems
Bloomberg Businessweek US

New Money, New Problems

In Naples, an influx of wealthy is displacing out-of-towners lower-income workers

time-read
4 mins  |
March 20 - 27, 2023