Art, Aesthetics, and Climate Change

What is the role of aesthetics in understanding the climate crisis? How do questions of beauty inform our decisions about land use, justice, and technology? What is the relationship between art-making and climate action advocacy? In this combined seminar and studio course, we will examine points of intersection between the artistic and the environmental: from climate activism to data visualization to aesthetic debates about landscape and energy. We will explore these themes through readings in art history and philosophy, and by examining works of climate-oriented contemporary art. Students will complete creative projects designed to illuminate the role of visual communication in shaping individual and societal responses to climate change.