Working as a creative professional within academia has many benefits, including institutional support for publishing work. I am grateful for a number of upcoming publication opportunities focused on the collaborative Hemlock Hospice experience with Dr. Aaron Ellison, The first of several co-authored publications with Aaron was published this week in Sciart Magazine. The themed issue of Sciart Magazine features a variety of thought-provoking articles exploring how creative collaborations can have a positive impact on the practice of science. Read our article online here.
Warming Warning Installation at Harvard
Warming Warning installation on Science Center Plaza, Harvard University, Cambridge, MA
A new public art sculpture created by Harvard Forest Fellow David Buckley Borden and Harvard Forest Senior Ecologist Dr. Aaron Ellison in partnership with Harvard's Office of Sustainability, and Common Space will be on view at the Harvard University Science Center Plaza from Oct. 19 to Dec. 7, 2018.
This educational installation combines science-communication, art, and environmental design to communicate local and global climate change data.
The design represents climate change as a series of painted triangles ("deltas") constructed from ten foot long 4x6" hemlock timbers that were harvested and milled at the Harvard Forest. Shadows, moiré patterns, and heat-gradient color-spectrum vibrancy change as the 10.5 x 12 x 28’ work reflects the sun's arc, producing a work that will reward repeated visits.
When viewed from the side, the timbers reveal a wall of information about climate change: one side highlights the dramatic rise in global average temperatures since 1880. The other highlights potential warming futures. The sculpture leaves space at the end of the time series for more triangles to be added. Visitors will, in effect, become a part of the story of Earth's climate history and be encouraged to consider their vital role in its future.
The exhibit's opening event, called "Climate is Global, Change is Local," will be held Oct. 22, 4-5:30pm in Harvard's Cabot Science Library. The event is open to all, but particularly geared towards students. It is co-hosted by Harvard Forest and the Office for Sustainability and will include presentation by the artists, plus speakers from across Harvard's schools and centers (including the Graduate School of Education, Graduate School of Design, and Harvard College Conservation Society), who will describe their local work on climate and some pathways for students to get involved.
Hemlock Hospice Closing Reception on Oct 20th
The Harvard Forest will host a public event from 10:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. on Saturday October 20, 2018, to explore species loss and encourage community action. A panel discussion and Q&A by experts on invasive species and human decision-making will augment guided tours of Hemlock Hospice, a field-based sculpture installation created by Harvard Forest Fellow David Buckley Borden. The new Hemlock Hospice documentary film will also premiere.
Doors will open for the Oct. 20 event at 10:00 a.m., and the first guided tour of Hemlock Hospice sculpture exhibition will begin at 10:15 a.m.
In a speaker program beginning at 12:00 p.m. in the Fisher Museum, scientists Dave Orwig, Laura Meyerson, and Valerie Pasquarella from Harvard Forest, the University of Rhode Island, and the University of Massachusetts at Amherst, respectively, will discuss the ecosystems we’re losing due to invasive species in New England, the impacts this loss has on our landscape and human well-being, the changes we can expect to see in Central Massachusetts, and the range of actions community members can take.
The panel discussion will be followed by the premiere of a new documentary film by Faizal Westcott, Devin Chaganis, Casey Keenan, David Buckley Borden, and Aaron Ellison, about hemlock loss in New England and the Hemlock Hospice exhibition. The film screening will be followed by a second guided tour of the art exhibition from 2:15 p.m. to 4:00 p.m. The Hemlock Hospice exhibit will remain on view at the Harvard Forest through November 18, 2018.
More event details available here.
Featured on NPR's Living On Earth
NPR’s Living on Earth featured the Hemlock Hospice project today. Many thanks to Savannah Christiansen for taking the time to journey to the Harvard Forest to produce this thoughtful piece with Aaron Ellison and I. Listen to this radio program here.
BAR Review
I am delighted to read Sophie Kissinger’s review of the Hemlock Hospice project in the latest issue of the Boston Art Review. You can read the insightful review in print and now online. The BAR also has a sharp online event/happening listing and listserv. Sign up and get involved.
Boston Voyager Magazine Interview
In the words of Boston Art News, “Boston Voyager is collecting artists like Pokemon.” I was recently interviewed as part of the Magazine’s “Thought-provoker” series. You can read the interview here.
Triple Decker Ecology Exhibition at Somerville Museum
Triple Decker Ecology explores urban environmental issues of Somerville, MA (past, present, and future). Curator Pennie Taylor presents an interdisciplinary installation by artist David Buckley Borden and collaborators that includes both local artifacts and new works inspired by the Somerville Museum’s historic collection. Project collaborators include: Kate Sokol, Mike D., Alyson Fletcher, Jack K. Byers, and Jackie Barry. Opening reception, Thursday, Oct 11, 6PM. Somerville Museum is located at 1 Westwood Rd, Somerville, MA 02143.
Hemlock Hospice Documentary Teaser
This summer I had the pleasure of working with Dr. Aaron Ellison, Faizal Westcott, Devin Chaganis, and Casey Keenan on a short documentary about the Hemlock Hospice project at Harvard Forest. The documentary will serve as the capstone communication piece for the year-long project and premiere on October 20th as part of the closing reception for the project. The closing reception will take place at the Harvard Forest and feature a full day of programming, including the release of the film. The Hemlock Hospice interpretive trail will be de-installed starting November 19th. For details on the closing reception, please visit the Harvard Forest event facebook page.
Upcoming Fall Lectures
The next Hemlock Hospice talk will take place on the evening of November 7th at Le Laboratoire in Cambridge MA. This talk had been rescheduled from September 19th. Event details available here.
Hemlock Hospice: landscape ecology, art, and design, as science communication
Abstract:
This talk focuses on the intersection of ecology, art, and design as viewed through the lens of the Hemlock Hospice project. Hemlock Hospice is an, art-based interpretive trail conceived and developed by David Buckley Borden, Aaron M. Ellison, and their team of interdisciplinary collaborators. On view through mid-November 2018, this immersive site-specific science-communication project tells the story of the ongoing demise of the eastern hemlock tree at the hands (and mouth) of a tiny aphid-like insect, the hemlock wooly adelgid. While telling the story of the loss of eastern hemlock, the project addresses larger issues of climate change, human impact, and the future of New England forests.
The talk includes an overview of the Hemlock Hospice project from the complementary perspectives of science, art, and design, and also addresses the practical challenges of creating and realizing such interdisciplinary projects. Borden and Ellison will share their research-driven creative process, including challenges and lessons and highlight the team’s collaborative approach to science communication at the intersection of landscape, creativity, and cultural event.
Preprint on SocArXiv
Preprint on SocArXiv, "Hemlock Hospice: Landscape Ecology, Art, and Design as Science-Communication" coauthored by Dr. Aaron Ellison and I, is available online. Read it here.
Abstract: Interdisciplinary science-communication projects at the intersection of landscape ecology, art, and design are effectively realized through a democratic process involving co-equal collaborators. We illustrate this collaborative process through a case study of Hemlock Hospice, a 3000-meter-long art-based, site-specific interpretive trail at Harvard University’s Harvard Forest. At one level, Hemlock Hospice describes the ongoing demise of the eastern hemlock tree caused by a tiny aphid-like insect, the hemlock woolly adelgid. More broadly, Hemlock Hospice addresses issues of climate change, human impact, and the future of the world’s forests. This case study highlights gains realized from embedding artists and designers in an active scientific research site while specifically including scientists as full partners in designing and producing mission-driven educational artwork. It also illuminates challenges of democratizing art/science collaborations, including different modes of communication among participants; appropriate levels of financial support; different measures of scientific and artistic success; and creating opportunities for direct action.
Artist Talk at Room 83 Spring
In support of the Dynamic Entities group show at Room 83 Spring, I'll be giving an artist talk on Thursday, June 14, at 7pm. The free public talk, entitled "Hybrid Vigor: Ecology, Art, and Design," is a general-audience lecture focused on the creative intersection of ecology, art, and design as viewed through the lens of my interdisciplinary practice. I will share my research-driven creative process and highlight my collaborative approach to environmental communication at the intersection of landscape, creativity, and cultural event. Case study projects will include, Hibernaculum at Boston’s Innovation and Design Building, Hoosic River Expedition in North Adams, and Hemlock Hospice at the Harvard Forest.
See the show, hear the talk, all in one visit. Room 83 Spring is located at 83 Spring Street in Watertown MA. Seating is limited. Please RSVP by emailing room83spring@gmail.com
Free Lecture at Urbano Project
Last Boston-area talk for this Spring/Summer. Hear the Hemlock Hospice talk and see my Proposed Futures exhibition at the Urbano Project in one visit this Friday. Free public talk with Dr. Aaron Ellison of the Harvard Forest starts at 6pm. Exhibition runs through May 15. Event details available at http://urbanoproject.org/ : Installation Photo: Faizal Westcott
Broto Conference
I am excited to present the Hemlock Hospice project with Aaron Ellison on Sunday, May 6th at the upcoming Broto conference in Provincetown, MA. If you find yourself at the conference, do say hello.
Some information about the conference from the Broto website:
- We are a Conference: May 4-6, 2018 is our inaugural summit and will devote its entire weekend program to building and ratifying a Broto Collaboration Blueprint. This will be an exportable framework for collaboration that we hope will inspire creative exploration of the rich territory between art and science, while preserving the integrity of both. The first Broto conference is a brisk, three-day program of speakers, panels, workshops and social events.
- We are a Community: Our site broto.eco is the home base for a growing community of artists and scientists – learning about collaboration, finding collaborators, sharing collaboration insights, and lauding the gains we have been able to catalyze. We’re learning, transparent and disciplined.
- We are Collaboration: At our foundation, we are made up of art and science but Broto has become something more and different. This is a pioneering work in progress and our understanding of the nature of collaboration – not just the tantalizing potential of collaboration – is our primary driver.
Group Show at Room 83 Spring
Looking forward to exhibiting work at Room 83 Spring in a group show entitled Dynamic Entities along with Rebecca Hutchinson and Joel Longnecker from May 12 to June 23. Opening reception will take place on Saturday, May 12 from 4-6PM. More info here.
Orion Magazine Project Profile
Orion Magazine feature by Gabriel Poplin on Harvard Forest Hemlock Hospice installation work can be read here. A fun quote: "My work is similar to a Morrissey song. The content is terribly depressing. But the delivery doesn't need to be depressing."
Reception for Proposed Futures Exhibition at Urbano Project
Looking forward to the reception for Proposed Futures: Then and Now exhibition at the Urbano Project on Wednesday April 25th at 6PM. Exhibition focuses on the proposal as a creative medium across a variety of recent projects including residencies at Harvard Forest, Teton Art Lab, Trifecta Editions, and MASS MoCA. The reception will also host a live performance by Ben Cosgrove who's landscape-inspired compositions are stunning. The Urbano Project is located at 29 Germania Street, JP, Mass...right across from the Sam Adams Brewery. Exhibition runs through May 17th.
Spring Hemlock Hospice Public Lectures
Hemlock Hospice collaborator Aaron M. Ellison (Senior Ecologist, Harvard Forest) and I are actively seeking speaking opportunities. Interested in bringing the talk to your organization? If so, please reach out; Borden@fas.harvard.edu
Hemlock Hospice: landscape ecology, art, and design, as science communication
Abstract:
This talk focuses on the intersection of ecology, art, and design as viewed through the lens of the Hemlock Hospice project. Hemlock Hospice is an, art-based interpretive trail conceived and developed by David Buckley Borden, Aaron M. Ellison, and their team of interdisciplinary collaborators. On view through mid-November 2018, this immersive site-specific science-communication project tells the story of the ongoing demise of the eastern hemlock tree at the hands (and mouth) of a tiny aphid-like insect, the hemlock wooly adelgid. While telling the story of the loss of eastern hemlock, the project addresses larger issues of climate change, human impact, and the future of New England forests.
The talk includes an overview of the Hemlock Hospice project from the complementary perspectives of science, art, and design, and also addresses the practical challenges of creating and realizing such interdisciplinary projects. Borden and Ellison will share their research-driven creative process, including challenges and lessons and highlight the team’s collaborative approach to science communication at the intersection of landscape, creativity, and cultural event.
Artist Talk at Urbano Project
This Thursday. I'll be hosting an artist talk and walk through the Proposed Futures: Then and Now exhibition at Urbano Project on Thursday April 5th at 6PM. The talk will focus on the use of the proposal as a creative medium across a variety of recent projects. The Urbano project is located at 29 Germania Street, JP, Mass...right across from the Sam Adams Brewery. Exhibition runs through May 17th. Open Mon-Friday, 1-6PM, or by appointment.
Exhibition at Urbano Project
[Boston, MA] Urbano Project will present David Buckley Borden | Proposed Futures: Then and Now, an exhibition that explores how art and design can foster cultural cohesion around environmental issues and help inform ecology-minded decision-making, March 30 – May 17, 2018.
David Buckley Borden | Proposed Futures : Then and Now
March 30 – May 17, 2018
Artist Installation Tour : April 5, 6pm
Reception: April 25, 6 -9pm
Hemlock Hospice talk with Artist David Buckley Borden and Harvard Forest Scientist Dr. Aaron M. Ellison: May 11, 6pm
Public Talk at Maine Audubon
Mark Your Conservation Calendars. Dr. Aaron M. Ellison and I will be presenting the Hemlock Hospice project at the Gilsland Farm Audubon Center in Falmouth, ME on May 10th at 7PM. We look forward to sharing new design impact data on the project as well new creative developments in our year-long outreach campaign. More event information, including registration links, can be found here.