Documentation of a performance activation of “in, over, through”, 2022
featuring dancer Katilin Guerin, original music written and performed by Denise Frazier, choreographed by Elana Jacobs of Cabin Fever Live Art
video and editing by Varvara Degtiarenko
in, over, through
Recycled pipes, recycled electrical wire, sugarcane, lime, recycled paint, found single-use disposable plastic litter, soil, native and locally adapted Louisiana plants
dimensions variable
2019-present
Photos below featuring dancer Kaitlin Guerin by CFreedom, all other photos by Varvara Degtiarenko
This ongoing oudoor installation in my studio courtyard is my vision of what future gardens might look like based on our current societal addiction to fossil fuels and their byproducts. This work explores the uncertain horizons that face us collectively in a time of human-caused global warming—in particular, in Southern Louisiana where the oil and gas industry is a major part of the state’s economy. This installation materially connects contemporary issues like fossil fuel extraction and plastic production with the legacies of extraction and exploitation, illustrating their impact on this landscape over time by drawing viewers into an experience that links past and present with future ecosystems that might emerge from our culture’s detritus if we fail to change course. Long after we have rendered this place uninhabitable for us, our waste and the “nature” we have tried to tame will remain and continue to commingle, inextricably woven into the ecological mesh of our planet.
In this work, I’m creating a “garden” combining unlikely materials to help shift the viewer’s perspective both on our role on this planet and on the paradigm of the extractive industries as an inherent part of this landscape. By turning pollution and waste into an art material, I wish to alter our collective perception of what our world looks like and what individual and collective changes are needed for a just transition from fossil fuels and plastic to ensure a livable future for our descendants.
Visits to this installation can be scheduled by appointment here