CLIMATE CHANGE // NATURE // ART // MULTIDISCIPLINARY COLLABORATION
Art installation
Pop-up exhibitions
Research
Influenced by the profound consequences that natural disasters, climate change, and human impact has on our planet, Nature is Greater Than Us is an ongoing experimental art research project investigating and responding to people’s personal stories who have been affected by environmental destruction in disasters around the world.
The work unfolded in a pop-up space at Treehouse NDSM over the course of a few months, inviting artists and the public to engage with the multimedia work as it developed. The research began with interviews of people present at specific events, for example the Porto Alegre floods in Brazil 2024 and the Los Angeles fires in the USA 2025. Adopting a mixed-media approach, the conversations were be translated to multiple formats: audio recordings, photographs, message transcripts, illustrations, paintings, found objects, and other methods of the artists' choice. The research aims to investigate the context around these events, consult professional opinions with politicians & climate specialists, question humanity’s role & relationship to nature, consider potential action that can be taken, and contemplate where we go from here.
The project provided an open space for experimentation in how these stories can be translated into art. Other artists were invited to collaborate in the pop-up over the 3 months, contributing their own ideas, research and art to enrich the project. The space doubled as a research container at the same time as an exhibition space, developing as the project progressed.
At the end of every month, we hosted an exhibition day sharing the project progress and a special program for the public; however, visitors were welcome in the space throughout the months to discuss the work and themes.
The River is a Body
(2025)
Mixed media collage: paper, photography, glue, acrylic paint, marker, pen, colored pencil
This piece is a mix of documentary and personal artistic response to the devastating floods that took place in Brazil in May 2024 as a result of intense rainfall, structural neglect, and environmental exploitation. A mixed-media collage layering imagery, news article excerpts, handwritten thoughts and material exploration. The combination of materials reflects how we formulate our understanding of these events: we're fed information via news outlets, social media, and our own personal experiences.
Photographs that went viral (such as the airplane stranded on the flooded airport runway) and my own photographs from my family's hometown of Porto Alegre years before the flood link my personal connection to the physical spaces that became submerged. Through this work, I invite viewers to question our relationship with the natural world and the motives behind much of its destruction.
In my research, one of the strongest statements that stood out to me inspired the title of this piece: "The river is not just a watercourse - it's a body that lives in dialogue with the Earth." The river is not simply a static container that holds water; the earth and water are affected by what we put into them, by how we treat the environment around it, by how we interact with it. And if we mistreat it, the river is a living body that will react, that will have limits.
The soil of the river Guaíba was overworked after years of excessive agricultural production, exported and sold internationally to "improve" the Brazilian economy. But when the local population suffers from famine and the land of the river cannot absorb the rain, is this really what's best for the land? For its people? Who is really benefitting from the "economic development"?
So often we treat nature as if we are the dominant beings on this planet. But organic matter is affected by our impact, and once we abuse our resources we will be the ones facing the consequences. We are not greater than nature if nature can destroy us.
Photographs that went viral (such as the airplane stranded on the flooded airport runway) and my own photographs from my family's hometown of Porto Alegre years before the flood link my personal connection to the physical spaces that became submerged. Through this work, I invite viewers to question our relationship with the natural world and the motives behind much of its destruction.
In my research, one of the strongest statements that stood out to me inspired the title of this piece: "The river is not just a watercourse - it's a body that lives in dialogue with the Earth." The river is not simply a static container that holds water; the earth and water are affected by what we put into them, by how we treat the environment around it, by how we interact with it. And if we mistreat it, the river is a living body that will react, that will have limits.
The soil of the river Guaíba was overworked after years of excessive agricultural production, exported and sold internationally to "improve" the Brazilian economy. But when the local population suffers from famine and the land of the river cannot absorb the rain, is this really what's best for the land? For its people? Who is really benefitting from the "economic development"?
So often we treat nature as if we are the dominant beings on this planet. But organic matter is affected by our impact, and once we abuse our resources we will be the ones facing the consequences. We are not greater than nature if nature can destroy us.
Progresso (Progress)
(2025)
Mixed media collage: paper, photography, acrylic paint, marker, pen
A mixed media collage piece mapping locations where my cousin evacuated in Porto Alegre, Brazil, during the 2024 floods. The artwork includes photos from their daily walks around the neighborhood, capturing the community rescue efforts and monitoring how high or low the water levels were.
When the agricultural industry discusses progress for the country through their development, what are they really talking about? Progress for what, and for who? For the Brazilian economy? To develop the country's foreign exports? And at what cost? Does destruction of the environment and innocent lives justify this "progress" when local residents are impacted so negatively? Do they prioritize financial profit over responsibility? Prioritize agricultural development to export to other countries over feeding their own empoverished population?
It's ironic that we have the words "Ordem e Progresso (order and progress)" on the Brazilian flag.
When the agricultural industry discusses progress for the country through their development, what are they really talking about? Progress for what, and for who? For the Brazilian economy? To develop the country's foreign exports? And at what cost? Does destruction of the environment and innocent lives justify this "progress" when local residents are impacted so negatively? Do they prioritize financial profit over responsibility? Prioritize agricultural development to export to other countries over feeding their own empoverished population?
It's ironic that we have the words "Ordem e Progresso (order and progress)" on the Brazilian flag.
