The six artists and collectives in this exhibition use a broad range of media to comment, highlight and take an activist stance against those who threaten the stunning yet fragile Icelandic ecosystems, and document how climate change, often fueled by human actions driven by economic interests, is impacting the natural environment, at home and abroad, with potentially disastrous consequences.
Iceland prides itself for being at the forefront of energy sustainability: 90% of households uses geothermal water to heat houses; almost 100% electricity comes from domestically renewable sources such as hydropower and geothermal; however, while these stats make Iceland look like heaven on earth for any environmentally-conscious individual, all that glitters isn’t gold. The increasing debate over the negative environmental impacts of both hydro-electric projects and geothermal developments, have bolstered protests amongst the public and pushed the search for alternative energy solutions such as wind power and tidal energy.
As one of the worst Atlantic hurricane seasons in history concludes with tens of millions of people significantly affected across the Caribbean and the American southeast and northeast regions, as well as the ongoing effect of sea level rise, this exhibition brings to the fore in poetic, and sometimes ironic ways, a new context for the climate change debate.