When artists address climate change and its impacts in their works, they generate entirely new visions. This was also the case at the 2016 Climate Day in Graz. The KlimARS competition presented a jury selection of artworks in three award categories. The pieces by twenty different artists illustrate how subjective artistic approaches to this very personally experienced topic can be, and how the issue can be conveyed by means of various creative means in order to appeal to a larger audience. The guests of the evening were both enthusiastic about and surprised by the exhibits and the performances presented on stage.
It has been scientifically proven that climate change is happening; its impacts continually increase in all regions of the world; and still, mankind keeps accelerating climate change through its behaviour and actions.
The KlimARS 2016 competition went in search for artistic positions addressing this issue. The questions posed to the artists were: Does climate change play a role in your work? How would you express climate change in your medium?
Art can help to communicate scientific facts to a wider audience – also with the aim of raising climate change awareness.
The competition was geared to artists who use their artistic positions to translate climate change, its impacts, or the problematic of dealing with it into a new ‘language’, thus making tangible the dynamics associated with the issues at hand.
Basic information:
Ninety-nine works were entered into the competition between November 2015, when the call for submissions was issued, and the submission deadline in February 2016. A jury composed of representatives from the fields of climate research, the fine arts, performing arts, music, and arts journalism selected twenty pieces which were publicly presented at the Graz University of Music and Performig Arts’ House of Music and Music Drama (MUMUTH) on 7 April 2016.