NAIS 60 Ecology, Sovereignty, and Contemporary Art in Oceania
Anthropologic environmental degradation has emerged as a key theme in contemporary art and visual culture in Oceania. This proliferation of work comes as no surprise considering Oceania is on the “frontlines” of anthropogenic climate change as one of the world’s regions most threatened by rising sea levels, extreme weather events, and resource extraction. In the face of such ecological crises, artistic production and creative expression are crucial means by which peoples of Oceania and its diaspora are fighting for environmental justice. In this course, we will learn from Indigenous filmmakers, performers, sculptors, architects, poets, photographers, and installation artists who are taking control of the imagery and offering radical reimaginings that inspire the public to act and to hold those most responsible to account.
Throughout this course we will learn about and engage with contemporary artists who analyze the history of settler colonial impacts on land/water in the Pacific through resource extraction, military and nuclear testing, tourism and urban development, and climate change. In the context of these histories of environmental destruction, the course will embrace and explore Indigenous artistic activism.
The course will conclude with a deep dive into artistic constructions of the region’s alternative, decolonized futures.