My conversation with artist-researcher, facilitator and educator Jen Rae about art and emergency preparedness, community-engaged art, the perception of reality, ecological grief and arts + climate activities in Australia.
- The thing about a preparedness mindset is that you are thinking into the future and so if one of those scenarios happens, you've already mentally prepared in some sort of way for it, so you're not dealing with the shock. That's a place as an artist that I feel has a lot of potential for engagement and for communication and bringing audiences along. When you're talking about realities, accepting that reality, has the potential to push us to do other things. It's great to hear about Canada Council changing different ways around enabling the arts and building capacity in the arts in the context of the climate emergency. It'll be interesting to see how artists step up.
jen rae, conscient podcast, may 10, 2021, australia
Dr Jen Rae is a Narrm (Melbourne)-based artist-researcher, facilitator and educator of Canadian Red River Métis-Scottish descent from Treaty 6 Territory. Her practice-led research expertise is in the discursive field of contemporary environmental art and environmental communication. It is centred around cultural responses to climate change/everything change - specifically the role of artists and creative inquiry.
During her PhD, she worked for the Australian Collaboration synthesising IPCC reports and later the Climate Action Network, further noting the absence of creatives in the fields of climate change communication and advocacy. In 2015, Jen shifted focus to the climate emergency specifically on discourses around food futures [through Fair Share Fare], disaster preparedness and speculative futures predominantly articulated through multi-platform creative projects, research, facilitation, and community alliances.
I first came across Jen Rae’s work through this lecture she gave at Concordia University: The role of artists in the climate emergency. I then started reading and viewing her extensive body of work on art and climate and invited her to share her knowledge and insights.
As I did with all episodes this season, I have integrated excerpts from previous episodes in this case, from e19 reality in this episode.
I would like to thank Jen for taking the time to speak with me and for sharing her deep knowledge of community art practices and experience in the emerging field of art and emergency preparedness.
Jen Rae lives, creates and works on the unceded traditional lands of the Wurundjeri, Boon Wurrung, Woi Wurrung, and Wathaurong people of the Kulin Nation and offer her deepest respect to their elders - past, present and emerging.
For more information on Jen’s work, see https://www.jenraeis.com and http://www.fairsharefare.com/.
Links to a selection of Jen’s work: