RMI Taps into the Power of Climate Art
Art allows us to respond emotionally to climate change — and turn that emotion into action, explains a guest contributor from The Climate Museum. See how RMI explores this dynamic in our 2024 annual report.
As the impacts of climate change worsen, people are feeling increasingly alarmed.
Indeed, a recent global study of climate change beliefs found that, in more than three-quarters of the regions surveyed, most people described themselves as “alarmed” — the poll’s highest level of anxiety.
However, alarm does not necessarily translate to action. In the United States, 64 percent report being worried about climate change, but only 6 percent are talking about it. This dissonance between belief and behavior leads to what climate communications experts call the “spiral of silence.” Despite feeling worried, people rarely talk about climate change because they rarely hear anyone else talking about it.
In short, people all over the globe are anxious about this existential threat but struggle with what they can do. This self-perpetuating cycle not only makes us feel overwhelmed and alone, it also holds us back from making progress on the climate crisis.
So how do we close this gap between anxiety and action? Art can be the bridge.
What is climate art?
Art has always been an avenue to connect with our emotions, explore social issues, critique injustice, question what we know, and experiment with seeing things from new perspectives. It can unite those who envision ways to do things differently — and it can help coalesce movements, both artistic and social. Climate art, similarly, has the potential to bring us together and motivate calls for change.
Climate art, though lacking a specific or universal definition, is what it sounds like — capturing the stories behind our understanding and experiences of climate change. It helps raise awareness of the issue. But beyond that, it creates opportunities for all people — across languages, borders, and time — to react, relate, and, most importantly, respond to climate change.
Without needing to be an expert in climate science or policy, without needing to understand biogeochemistry or electric grid operations, climate art allows people to enter into the conversation simply by sharing their own experiences. Creating a physical, emotional, and social space for reflection and participation offers a way to break the spiral of silence.
In the emerging field of “neuroarts,” researchers are proving how art triggers the release of neurochemicals, hormones, and endorphins that leave you feeling more connected to yourself and others. Many of us think of art simply as a form of entertainment, but it can literally rewire your brain — building new synaptic connections and pruning inefficient ones. Tapping into our emotional responses to art can lead to tangible change, both individually and collectively.
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Hope, applied
This summer, RMI invited artists from across the globe to submit art for inclusion in its annual report, and I had the honor of joining the jurying panel. They asked artists to evoke a sense of “applied hope” — to convey solutions, action, and the overarching idea that “systemic change is possible.”
For Keith Buswell in Nebraska, this meant using the symbiotic relationship between trees and mycorrhizal fungi as a symbol of interconnectedness, exchange, and community. In Manawa (2022) (Page 2), organisms work together to create a thriving, resilient system. Just as with each species in the forest, to restore the climate and create a sustainable energy system, every sector must come together — not just the sciences and business, but also the arts, education, public health, farming, fashion, and so on.
For Joy Saha in Bangladesh, this meant capturing the century-old traditional fishing festival on a glowing winter morning in Pabna. Catch of the Day (2023) (Page 8) highlights the beauty of human stewardship, cultural heritage, communal participation, and the first-hand, present-day lived experience of sustainability.
And for Susie Oh in South Korea, this meant depicting the transition from a polluting, harmful energy system to a clean, renewable one. In a time when it is easy to feel weighed down by climate doom and gloom, Winds of Change (2024) (Page 56) captures transition and transformation, allowing us to imagine the possibility of something better.
These are just three of the eleven works we selected from nearly 800 submissions. The others are included throughout the annual report. Taken together, the work offers a reminder that, to build a better future, we must first visualize it.
A climate solution
Artists help us see our potential. When we can envision what we need, we can create a guiding star and work toward it. Artists reveal our values and move us in ways that data often can’t. As the author Toni Cade Bambara put it, “The role of the artist is to make the revolution irresistible.”
Like renewable energy, climate art is a critical tool to bring about systemic change. Through climate art, we can close the gap between anxiety and action. By utilizing art as a climate solution, we can break the spiral of silence and change the existing culture around climate.
Anais Reyes is a curator and expert on the intersection of climate change and culture who has worked at The Climate Museum in New York City since 2018.
