Artwork by SUNY ESF and Syracuse University students highlights loss of biodiversity.
Random Access Gallery will present “The Extinction Gallery,” an exhibition featuring work by Syracuse University and SUNY College of Environmental Science and Forestry students, with an opening reception on Friday, Dec. 6, from 5-8 p.m. in 117 Smith Hall. The exhibition is free and open to the public.
In recognition of Remembrance Day for Lost Species, the exhibition explores the ways we honor and remember the landscapes, cultures, and species lost in the present era being called the “Sixth Mass Extinction.” The exhibition was curated by Katlyn Brumfield, an M.F.A. candidate in the College of Visual and Performing Arts’ School of Art. Through differing methods of expression, participating artists and scientists call attention to the existential shift our planet is undergoing and advocate for the survival and protection of what still remains.
In “The Extinction Gallery,” Brumfield collaborates with ESF students to showcase the overall loss of biodiversity in the past several decades. In combining projects related to ecology and species loss, this event recognizes Remembrance Day for Lost Species. Observed on Nov. 30, the day highlights extinct and critically endangered species, cultures, lifeways and ecological communities. Brumfield focuses her practice in ways that challenge predominant attitudes about non-human nature and humans’ role within it. She is inspired by global and systemic problems like climate change, fossil fuel extraction and biodiversity loss. Brumfield visualizes projected futures outlined in climate and ecological assessments and conveys the cognitive and emotional weight of humans’ increasingly devastating impact on natural environments. By shifting the temporal vantage point of the viewer, Brumfield hopes to activate the present moment as a crossroads in which projected futures can either be avoided or realized.
Random Access Gallery’s exhibitions, performances, artist talks and panel discussions offer a space for broadening the scope of interdisciplinary collaboration and experimentation in contemporary creative practices. Through dynamic curatorial initiatives and inclusivity, the gallery brings together local, national and international artists for critical conversations. Random Access is funded through the generous contributions of the School of Art and Contemporary Art Space Programming.
For accommodation requests, contact Brumfield at randomaccessgallery@gmail.com.
Two images in “The Extinction Gallery” exhibition at Random Access Gallery
