Passport to Creativity Creativity meets conservation for Earth Day
Six students. Three environmentally protected landscapes. One big challenge: we sent students with creative mentors to document the landscapes of Patagonia, Kenya and Lord Howe Island and share their experience with others. Their creative adventures to capture the conservation at hand in these areas all culminate into an immersive installation in L.A. opening on Earth Day. See what each student took away from their creative exploration.
PATAGONIA
WITH ANDREW LING
I think artists need to use their gifts to show people why climate change is such an important topic. Artists have the potential to make these places even more beautiful.
It's so important to protect and cherish these places. Before you know it, they'll be gone.
Zenzele Ojore on her travels to PatagoniA
I was shocked and humbled by the immeasurablE beauty of the landscape. It was like nothing i'd seen before.
The environment shaped my work immensely. I wanted to present the smaller pieces of the landscape that make up the whole. Sometimes we look at this place through the lens of climate change and it seems too vast of a place and too big of an issue for a human to singularly tackle. I wanted to show that the larger landscape was a direct product of these smaller pieces. I hoped that this would allow people to understand that by protecting the tinier fragments, we are helping in the protection of the whole environment.
Kenya
With Lidia Gulyas
Maasai Mara is a place where wildlife is setting the rules, not people. It’s a partnership—it’s not about tourists coming to look at animals on display, it’s about doing life together, living with these animals, making it work in a way that both community and wildlife can live quietly and undisturbed. It’s coexisting.
This project has changed me. Humbled me. Challenged me. I’ve learned a lot about photography that helps me capture what I see and experience more truthfully, but I also feel like my creative boundaries have been pushed, my focus shifted from my work to the stories themselves.
Rachelle Tan on Kenya
I was so taken aback by the vastness of the lands, the colors of the environment and the animals who inhabit the place.
While venturing through the Maasai Mara, I was inspired by how so many factors exist in such a careful balance. This inspired me to create my Mandala Series. I wanted to reflect how the animals, the environment and the community coexist in a way that supports this continuous cycle.
Overall I want to communicate the importance and the significance of preserving the environment, the animal population and society as a whole. We often hear stories like these but feel as though we as individuals are powerless in changing the way society behaves. But actually, the greatest threat to our planet is the belief that someone else will save it.
LorD howe islanD
With Amelia Le Brun
The most surprising thing in this project was the unbelievable lengths the Islanders go to in an attempt to preserve the Island and keep its status as The Cleanest Place on Earth.
It was almost impossible to really understand the huge job these people are facing and the never-ending nature of it.
It is much easier to encourage people to protect the beautiful things in life. The worry is, if we cannot protect places like Lord Howe, in all of its infinite beauty, then what chance does anywhere else have?
Hugo Germain on Lord Howe Island
The fact that such a beautiful place is endangered by climate change; we were able to witness with our own eyes the effect of climate change on the fauna and flora of Lord Howe Island and it felt very concerning and scary.
I believe creators/artists have the ability to touch people’s minds with their work, and that it is therefore their responsibility to use it for the best.
What's next?
Immersive Exhibit
The students were challenged to bring the sights and sounds of each destination to life. On Earth Day, April 22, they'll reveal an immersive exhibit comprising three tunnels -- each one housing one of the locations, transporting urban dwellers to these awe-inspiring, endangered environments. If you're in L.A., stop by Bloom Square to experience it.