AEC: Art, Ecology and the Commons is an interdisciplinary program bringing artistic and ecological practices together in the aim of building a community on a 2,000-square-meter forest site along the Beirut River, in the suburbs of Beirut, Lebanon.
Planted by theOtherDada in 2019 as part of an urban afforestation initiative, Beirut's RiverLESS Forest serves as host and muse.
These are unprecedented times.
We are all fragilized by economic, psychological and social collapses; summoned to continuously question our priorities. However, TAP and theOtherDada are no strangers to these challenges: it is because and in spite of this context of crisis that Art, Ecology and the Commons is more relevant than ever.
Can togetherness be harnessed as a practice? Can we use it to address the glaring needs of our communities, and in so doing, discuss and design alternate possibilities for our future going forward?
This project will bring six participants together for ten days of experimental learning and exchange from and on a young forest site in Sin el Fil, punctuated by a series of commissions, public and outreach activities we have been stitching with individuals, collectives and institutions who share our values and positioning vis a vis our communities durduringting these times of distress. Our program seeks to harness this young forest’s interdependence and resilience to inspire and bring a community together under circumstances of undeniable agony in a gesture of persistence.
In collaboration with theOtherDada, this program is supported by the Arab Fund for Arts and Culture (AFAC), the French Institute, SUGi, the Municipality of Sin El Fil, Advanced Car Rental and Bossa Nova Hotel.
CLICK BELOW FOR THE PROGRAM:
Join Carbon CREW Project, Drawdown East End, Damon Gameau, and Southampton Arts Center for an array of virtual talks, workshops, and films on ways that we can participate in “regenerating” our earth and reversing climate devastation.
Environmental journalist Alexandra Talty will moderate presentations from around the world on vanguard soil sequestration techniques. From a carbon buyback program in Sri Lanka to an urban reforestation business in the Middle East, these experts will share their unique business models as well as potential tips for home gardeners also wishing to drawdown carbon and in turn revitalize their soils. Speakers include Keith Berns, Freddie Catlow, Jason Hansna-Cofield, Adib Dada, and Tanja Hester.
Watch it by copying the link below, from 17:55 until 42:05:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R4Lr1YF22yU
Let’s Talk About the Weather: Art and Ecology in a Time of Crisis is an exhibition addressing urgent issues around a changing climate, future ecological disaster, and what this means for our present moment. The challenge was to turn a very elongated volume with irregular openings, located on the rooftop of three residential buildings in Guangzhou into
a dynamic exhibition space, while working closely with multidisciplinary local and international artists.
