Solastalgia
2018 - ongoing
This is an ongoing performance project documenting the artist, utilizing hand-built paintings-turned-rafts, afloat in various climate-vulnerable locations.
Potomac River, Washington, DC 2018
New York Harbor, New York, NY 2022
Biscayne Bay, Miami, FL (upcoming 2026)
The first photograph was taken in August 2018 on the Potomac River in Washington, DC. The second photograph was taken in August 2022 in New York Harbor, NY. A third photograph is currently planned for Miami, Florida, the artist’s hometown.
The word “solastaligia” was coined by philosopher Glenn Albrecht in his 2003 book Solastalgia: a new concept in human health and identity. He describes it as "the homesickness you have when you are still at home" and your home environment is changing in ways you find distressing.
In many cases this is in reference to global climate change, but more localized events such as volcanic eruptions, drought or destructive mining techniques can cause solastalgia as well.
In 2015, an article in the medical journal The Lancet included solastalgia as a contributing concept to the impact of climate change on human health and well-being. More recent approaches have connected solastalgia to the experience of historic heritage threatened by the climate crisis, such as the ancient cities of Venice, Amsterdam, and Hoi An.
Rewilding
2014
Archival inkjet prints
Island of Hawai'i, HI 2014
Everglades National Park, FL 2014
A florescent Eve returns home to the Garden at last. Trees stretch freely and rivers reclaim their course, as she falls into the embrace of the earth.
Feminism and rewilding may initially seem unrelated, but they share some deep philosophical connections and goals around environmental justice, autonomy, and challenging dominant power structures.
Both advocate for freedom, restoration, and the dismantling of oppressive systems, whether those systems are gendered, ecological, or social.