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Abstract

This research paper in tandem with my artistic practice, investigates the mutual forces of interconnectivity which are intrinsic to the construction of the natural world and the human relationship to that world. This dissertation will begin by establishing the human dilemma in which we endlessly strive to overcome and work outside the laws of nature. We are polarized by two opposites. One is a consumer culture; the other is a culture of ethics where we seek to live in accordance with the natural world. People who live by the ethical vision recognize that we are inseparable from nature, connected by a network of mutuality. Thus nature is not to be overcome, but rather to be worked with. The search for sustainable alternatives to unsustainable practices is evidence for our realization that changes must be made in the way we interact with nature if we are to evolve. Mythology is of particular importance to the way we explore and understand our relationship with nature, this study will navigate two relevant texts: The Indra’s Net from the Hua-yen school of Chinese Buddhism and La Loba (The Wolf Woman) by the American poet Clarissa Pinkola Estés. Both stories reinforce the notion of the interconnectivity of humanity with the natural world. The paper will investigate the work of philosophers and theorists who highlight the important role of ethics, sustainability and creativity in contemporary culture. The works of Paul Leslie Thiele, Maja and Reuben Fowkes, Alain de Botton, John Armstrong, Nicolas Bourriaud and Mircea Eliade will be referenced. To complement their theories, the work of artists Lyndal Jones, Olafur Eliasson, Cai Guo-Qiang, Shinji Turner-Yamamoto and Zhang Huan will also be analyzed. Aspects which are of particular relevance to this discussion are: the vital role of space and scale in Cai’s artworks; the way Turner-Yamamoto exhibited trees, rocks and dust in abandoned temples in his Global Tree Project, so as to depict a connection between the material and spiritual worlds, and how dust particles are used in Zhang Huan’s paintings and sculptures to reflect on and symbolize our transient existence. I reference these artists in order to give context and content to my own work. In my studio practice, I use bones, kombucha bacteria, feathers and ash in installations that reflect the ephemeral state of life in the natural world.