Talk Explores Art, Science of ‘WILDLAND’

Artist Ethan Turpin and scientist Naomi Tague explore their combined work for “WILDLAND” in a free, public lecture, “Beyond Data Visualization: Art-Science Collaboration with Ethan Turpin and Naomi Tague” on Thursday, Jan. 30, from 5:30-6:30 p.m. in Westmont’s Porter Theatre. No RSVPs are needed; and light refreshments will be served.

Westmont Ridley-Tree Museum of Art exhibits “WILDLAND: Ethan Turpin's Collaborations on Fire and Water” through March 22.

Turpin, a local Santa Barbara artist and Tague, an earth system scientist at UCSB's Bren School, have been collaborating for the past decade. The current “WILDLAND” exhibition includes several pieces from the collaboration, including “Future Mountain” and “TreeWater.” Turpin and Tague will share about their collaborative efforts, and more broadly about using art and science to help make sense of our changing environment and humanity’s relationship with it.

“Earth system science is complex, requiring the integration of multiple lines of evidence from observation technologies, physical theory and computational data science,” Tague says. “Confronted with converging global concerns, artists are less content to operate within aesthetic pursuits and elite cultural dialogue, but need ways to access emerging content.”

“Art-science collaborations can address both of these needs and help us make sense of a rapidly changing world,” Turpin says. “Art and science both seek to discover new ways of seeing and understanding, and as such are natural collaborators.”