Art

Climate is a common inspiration for art in the past and present. Numerous examples of such art pieces, exhibits, and themes are listed below, and their connections to climate are explored and highlighted.

The drop-down menus below contain links to in-site webpages developed by the Smith College Climate in Arts and History team. The display above features selected images from these pages. The Exploration (In Progress) menu lists additional topics that are in development to become full-length entries. 

Abbreviations:
  • CE = Common Era
  • c. = circa (approximately)
Climate-Inspired Art
  • Minoan vs. Classical Greek Paintings
  • Winter (n.d.) by George O’Connell
  • The Storm is Coming (1950) by Antonio Frasconi
  • Waste Isolation Pilot Plant Nuclear Crossroads (1989) by Patrick Nagatani
  • Revival Ramp (1996) by Mel Chin
  • La Tierra no esta Muriendo esta Siendo Asesinada…(The earth is not dying it is being assassinated) (2010) by La Escuela de Cultura Popular Mártires de 68
  • ¿A Quien mataste?… (2010) by La Escuela de Cultura Popular Mártires de 68
  • Nature’s Nation: American Art and Environment (2018)
  • Scherzo in Gray – Falcon and Mouse (2018-2020) by T. Klacsmann
  • Metronome and Its Climate Clock (2020) by Gan Golan and Andrew Boyd
  • Borealis: Life in the Woods (2021-2022) by Jeroen Toirkens and Jelle Brandt Corstius
  • Ghost Forest (2021) by Maya Lin
  • The Great Animal Orchestra (2021-2022) by Bernie Krause
  • Land Bodies Ecologies Festival (2023)
  • A World Adrift (2024) by Jason deCaires Taylor
Climate Themes in Art
  • Climate Change Murals from Around the World
  • Mud-based Architecture
  • Saharan Cave Art Provides Insight into Past Climate
Indigenous Perspectives
  • Saharan Cave Art Provides Insight into Past Climate  
  • Representations of Colonialism and Climate Change in Art
  • Featured Indigenous Artists
    • Charlotte Allingham 
    • Tyana Arviso
    • Marcus Trujillo
Articles
Artists
Projects