Artist Statement: 

     As molecules that trap and radiate heat, rising carbon dioxide acts as a leading cause of climate change. The lungs of the earth, composed of all her jungles and forests, typically reverse this process by converting these gases back into oxygen; however, continued deforestation removes a necessary healing process. This painting shows the moment at which a section of forest becomes exposed to its eventual fate: felling for firewood, housing, or other manufacturing uses. The viewer takes a position of shelter in the forest but is confronted with the contrast between its deep, textured beauty and the flatness of already-plowed land. In the same way, the earth’s entirety is subject to the shaping forces of humans who reside upon it.

Enquire: rylee_ewert1@baylor.edu