Ruth Wallen

I am an ecological and community-based artist, my work dedicated to the flourishing of the systems of interrelationships in which we live.  Originally trained in environmental science, I turned to art to promulgate visions for community and ecological health and well-being.
 
Much of my work is rooted in southern California.  Initially I focused on creating appropriately bounded relationships to place, while offering insightful, sometimes witty, critiques to the ever-sprawling suburbs and increasingly taller fences, be they gated-communities or the border wall.  In the last decade, trees have become the central figure in my work.  In California alone, over 150 million trees have died since 2010–ravaged by beetles, drought, fire, and a warming climate.

My work takes many forms including installations, web sites, artist books, performative lectures and site-specific work in an effort to foster dialogue, raise awareness, and advocate for a future where all species may flourish. Projects are based on repeated, mindful contemplation of place, extensive research, and collaboration with scientists and community activists. A focal point of recent installations are large photomontages, which as opposed to the grandiose sublime, encourage active exploration, offering a series of glimpses, incomplete views at a variety of scales evocative of the enchanted vibrancy of life. To help visualize scientific data, I have also created touch screen displays of tree rings based on historical weather data and models projecting climate to the year 2100 for both the ‘business as usual’ (rcp 8.5) and enlightened government (rcp 4.5) scenarios. These evolving displays present extensive research on local ecology, shifting baselines, and proposals for local climate action.