Reimagining the Future of Our Planet through Climate Art
Garrett Andrew Chong’s artistic journey began in the mid-1980s with honours from Emily Carr University, initially focusing on visual communications. Over time, his practice evolved, shifting from communication-focused art to environmental themes, with a particular emphasis on climate change and forest stewardship. Central to his work is an exploration of light-beginning with infrared film and later advancing to High Dynamic Range (HDR) technology, which captures light often invisible to the human eye. His art weaves a narrative of environmental awareness, with a strong focus on forests and the ecological challenges they face. Chong’s work has been featured in media outlets such as Stir Vancouver, CBC-Vancouver Radio, SFU Radio, TriCity News, and Vancouver is Awesome, which highlighted his 2024 Eroded Origins project, "Artist Captures BC’s Clear-Cutting and Climate Change."
In Chong’s imagination, the future exists as a delicate balance between utopia and dystopia-two extremes that coexist in potential harmony. His utopian vision sees humanity recognizing its deep connection to nature, creating a world where technology and the natural world coexist harmoniously. Forests, no longer ravaged by clear-cuts, flourish within biodiverse ecosystems supported by sustainable practices. In contrast, his dystopian vision warns of the consequences of ecological neglect-barren landscapes, climate chaos, and societal collapse. Yet, even within this dystopia, there remains hope: the potential for renewal through collective action and creativity.
In Eroded Origins, Chong explores these contrasts, examining how the erosion of natural landscapes mirrors the breakdown of societal structures and values. The exhibition raises urgent questions about climate change, the interconnectedness of Gaia’s ecosystems, and humanity’s role in shaping both the future of the planet and its fate. Through immersive works featuring tree stumps, forest fires, and the scars of ecological exploitation, GAC invites viewers to reflect on the profound impact of human actions and to reimagine a future where human and ecological identities are no longer in conflict.
Eroded Origins reinterprets historical deforestation events, such as the Kruger Lake Clear Cut in northern British Columbia-one of North America's largest and most visible clear-cuts. This event becomes a metaphor for broader societal and ecological breakdowns. Chong juxtaposes the “horrible-beauty” of clear-cut landscapes with the possibility of renewal, creating a tension between destruction and rebirth. His Cut series, featuring stumps from Kruger Lake, speaks to the unique identities of trees-like humans, they possess individual histories, characteristics, and age markers. Through dendrochronology, the study of tree rings, Chong explores how each stump holds a story of the past, offering a climate record that is both individual and collective.
In modern society, these stumps become poignant symbols. The practice of replacing diverse ecosystems with monocultures of fast-growing, high-yield trees distorts the natural identity of the forest. Just as human identities are shaped by culture and geography, trees too are shaped by their unique characteristics-species, age, size, and environment. What happens when these ecosystems are altered, and identities are erased or homogenized?
The Flow and The Cut series challenge viewers to reconsider the relationship between nature and human intervention. The Flow series symbolizes the devastation caused by human actions-forest fires, climate change, and deforestation-but also evokes fragile hope, suggesting that the atmosphere itself may offer protection and healing for the Earth. In contrast, The Cut series forces us to confront the tragedy of loss-what remains after ecological recklessness. The installation’s use of light and shadow accentuates this dialogue, highlighting both the horrible-beauty of our environmental impact.
The Blessing, presented as a video loop, acknowledges the devastation within the Kruger Lake Clear Cut and its surrounding habitat. This segment highlights the critical rethinking needed within government reforestation policies.
These questions call for deep reflection on humanity’s role in the planet's future and serves as a call to action-an invitation to listen to the silenced stories of the Earth. The Eroded Origins installation creates a liminal space, encouraging viewers to engage with the complexities of ecological change and transformation.
In this context, art becomes a tool for challenging societal, political, and cultural paradigms. It sparks dialogue about the need for ecological reformation and invites us to reconsider the choices we make as individuals and societies. The work calls for a radical rethinking of environmental policies, emphasizing that our future depends on a symbiotic relationship with nature-not exploitation, but collaboration.