The Wake

Although it is still as cold as a witch’s teat in Minnesota every winter, the climate is changing (no joke). But when most people in the Upper Midwest hear discussion on climate change, they usually think of how it will effect the rest world, not how it will influence little ole Minnesota.

“Paradise Lost: Climate Change in the North Woods,” an exhibit at the Bell Museum of Natural History that runs through April 11, hopes to change that mindset. What makes this exhibit unique from others about climate change is how it brings together the two totally different worlds of art and science.

The project was created at the University of Wisconsin-Madison by Dolly Ledin at the Center for Biology Education, and David Mladenoff at Forestry Ecology and Management. Ledin says the idea to combine art and science came from one of her colleagues, who is an artist and a biologist.

One of the goals of bringing art and science together, according to Ledin, is to show how important the issue of climate change is to the northern environment. She says she hopes art will help people see through the scientific jargon and see how climate change will affect the Upper Midwest.

“It’s one that is very difficult for people to understand,” Ledin says. “Art might have an ability to reach people in a way science alone could not.”

Once the exhibit idea was conceived, a call for artists who wanted to be involved with environmental issues was sent out. According to Ledin, over 100 artists applied to be in the project. A jury then narrowed it down to just 20.

After the 20 artists were chosen, the artists and scientists invaded each other’s realms for a three day workshop. First, Ledin explains, the scientists gave a few formal presentations about climate change. Then the artists and scientists did field studies, such as identifying trees, and discussed why some trees are more vulnerable to climate change than others. The groups also went to a bog and collected soil samples. They visited a lake and a river and discussed how water systems are affected by climate change.

Once the artists got down and dirty with the science portion, it was the scientist’s turn to make art. The scientists showed their hidden creative talents by creating ice sculptures, installation art in the forests and bogs, and talked about the way art can increase public awareness on the issues.

The hope was that both groups could reach an understanding of each other’s craft. Ledin says the organizers wanted the artists to know the facts scientists know about climate change, as well as how the scientists came to their conclusions.

“People think of science as just a collection of facts,” Ledin says. “We really wanted them to not only know the information, but learn what science is sort of about.”

Ledin says they also hoped that scientists can see how powerful art can be when it has a message.

“We wanted the scientists to understand what artists do and how they think, to experience what art could do to communicate,” Ledin explains.

Prior to the workshop both groups were a little apprehensive to journey into each other’s domain. Ledin says, the artists feared they would not understand the science behind climate change, while the scientists were worried that the artists might have trouble understanding what they were doing, as well as what the artists’ goals were. Luckily, there was a fairy tale ending.

“Both [groups] were scared to death,” Ledin says. “I feel like they really gained a mutual respect for each other’s talents and skills and really gained a different perspective and view of the world.”

After the workshop, the artists returned to their studios and, for a period of five to six months, created pieces based on the science they had learned. In total, about 40 pieces were created to be used in the exhibit. They vary from poems to music to sculptures, though the majority are paintings. All the pieces are accompanied with charts, graphs and text filled with facts about climate change in the Upper Midwest.

The actual exhibit has been traveling around Wisconsin for almost a year and has attracted an estimated 80,000 visitors, Ledin says. She has heard mostly good reactions. At most sites, there is a microphone set up so people can say what they know and how they feel about climate change.

This unique blending of art and science intrigued the Bell Museum of Natural History to acquire the exhibit. Currently, they are showing exhibits themed around climate change. Don Luce, Curator of Exhibits at the Bell Museum, says the Bell likes to have a mix of art and science and thought this was the perfect fit.

“What attracted us to Paradise Lost was that it was this collaboration of scientists and artists,” Luce says. “That’s the kind of interdisciplinary exhibit we’re looking for.”

The Bell is combining this exhibit with one of the university’s own titled “Mysteries in the Mud.” This exhibit is about how one researcher, Bryan Shuman, studied past climate changes in Minnesota by taking core samples in bogs and lakes in Southern Minnesota.

The goal of the climate change exhibits at the Bell is to get people to understand how nature works and deal with issues that affect the environment, Luce says. Many of the pieces in the “Paradise Lost” exhibit are able to convey this sentiment.

One piece Luce mentioned was done by an artist from Madison named Jamie Young titled “Ages 3 and Up: A Puzzle for Our Children.” It is a puzzle of the Midwest United States featuring three SUVs pulling the Wisconsin piece out of the map. In his artist statement, Young says that his piece is about “the fact that climate change is a long-term problem that has no easy answers.”

Another piece described by Ledin is an interactive sculpture of three birch trees. The birch trees started the exhibit bare last year. At every site people can take “leaves” of paper and write how they are going to reduce their greenhouse gas emissions. Ledin says the tree is nearly full now.

With all of these moving pieces of art related to climate change, what should people take away from this exhibit?

“Everybody’s going to get something different out of it,” Ledin says. “The kernel is that this is a serious problem that we all have a part in and we can do something about it.”

Luce says he also hopes that people will leave feeling like they learned a little bit more about what climate change is and how people study it, and will create some emotional attachment to the issue.

“We’d like people to have a better understanding of how scientists are working with this and studying it,” Luce says. “I hope everybody’s going to find something that hits a nerve with them.”