Artistic practices in the face of the Anthropocene: an experience of refuge

Abstract

The climate crisis is a situation that highlights the environmental emergency of the planet related to extreme weather events and the way nature responds to the action of human destruction. It is above all a political issue as it involves ways of producing, living and dying. Faced with the crisis, or this specific crisis: what can the artist do? How does art relate to these issues? What images are possible in the face of a catastrophe? What articulations can we invent as artists or cultural workers? What alliances are needed to avoid the 6th. mass extinction, what is happening now? This text aims to present an experience, an attempt at refuge and creation.  The proposal brought together artistic and educational actions that blur the boundaries between art and climate activism, to imagine other possible worlds in the face of the catastrophe that Brazil is experiencing today. The project was designed mainly to take place at a distance, creating a platform for monthly meetings between groups from Brazil and other countries to think about "tasks" of proximity between art, life and art, art and planetary care. The proposals and tasks carried out by the participants were published on an online platform created especially for the project. Based on this experience, the text intends to point out some possible ways to think about art and its role in this crucial moment in the history of the planet.