Climate Week NYC

New York-based artist and Shinnecock Nation tribe member, Jeremy Dennis will share his art-based research project with Museum visitors to preserve and create awareness of sacred, culturally significant, and historical Native American landscapes on Long Island, New York. Through curiosity about his own origin and ancestral history, Dennis gathers and combines archaeological, anthropological, historical, and oral stories to answer essential cultural defining questions: Where did my ancestors live? Why did they choose these places? What happened to them over time? Do these places still exist? The work on view documents the change in each landscape and highlights the everlasting connection between place and memory. Come see how this exhibition reinforces the idea that Native people existed throughout Long Island for more than ten thousand years, are still present today, and will continue to be.

Brooklyn-based photographer Nicole Vergalla is sharing work from her Gowanus Dredgers collection, which was shot in and around the Gowanus Canal in Brooklyn. Vergalla began taking photographs of the Gowanus Dredgers Canoe Club in 2017 after coming across their annual fundraising race, which set her focus on the canal and its surrounding areas. Fascinated by the dual essence of the Gowanus—a Superfund site, with a history marked by neglect and abuse, entwined with recreation, wildlife, and joy––she became more involved with the Dredgers and embraced their mission to get the public active and engaged in local waterways. Through encouraging the viewer to actively engage with the waterfront, she aims to create future stewards and advocates for the ecosystem we all share.

This piece from Natalie Collette Wood creates an outdoor assemblage sculpture that unites natural and found objects. The oyster shells featured in this work symbolize the intricacy and significance of these creatures while urging the viewer to recognize the essential role of oysters in sustaining our planet. The work evokes their resilience in reclaiming the seascape and calls attention to nature’s capacity to replace us if we neglect our responsibilities. Inspired by her “Swallowed By Nature” series, this sculpture reimagines our relationship with waste and the environment, intertwining oyster shells and salt-water bivalve mollusks with discarded domestic items. Oyster Party embodies the oysters’ powerful impact as natural filters and reflects on their historical connection to New York City, standing as a symbol of ecological rebirth.

The Art at the Edge artists will be joined by moderator Cortney Koenig Worrall, President and CEO of Waterfront Alliance, and Adela Gondek, a lecturer in Climate and public and environmental ethics, for a discussion on their work and the various media used to foster climate awareness. Sign up now to attend this free panel discussion exploring how art can translate difficult climate concepts for the general public and how artists support the work of climate activism.

This program is presented in partnership with Waterfront Alliance, Photoville, and The Howard Hughes Corporation. Registration is encouraged but walk ups are welcome.

Jeremy Dennis is a contemporary fine art photographer who explores indigenous identity, assimilation, and tradition. He holds an MFA from Pennsylvania State University, State College, Penn., and a bachelor’s in studio art from Stony Brook University, New York. Dennis was one of 10 recipients of a 2016 Dreamstarter grant from the national nonprofit organization Running Strong for American Indian Youth. Most recently, Jeremy received the Creative Bursar Award from Getty Images in 2018 to continue his series Stories.

Nicole Vergalla grew up in rural New Jersey and attended university in Philadelphia. Her work often focuses on the overlooked natural side of the urban environment. Nicole is a board member and photographer for the Gowanus Dredgers, an all-volunteer canoe club located in Gowanus, Brooklyn. Through her lens, she immortalizes the ongoing journey to restore the Gowanus Canal while inspiring others to take an active role in safeguarding our precious natural resources.

Natalie Collette Wood is a multidisciplinary artist living and working in New York City. She earned a master of fine arts degree from Herbert H. Lehman University, and a bachelor of fine art degree from the School of the Art Institute of Chicago. Wood has had several solo exhibitions and her work has been included in exhibitions such as the AIM Biannual: Bronx Calling at the Bronx Museum of Art, Ornamenting Crime at Zürcher Gallery, NY, NY and the Hot House at Kathryn Markel Fine Art in Chelsea. Wood’s work has also been featured in Vogue Italia, FLAUNT Magazine, Whitehot Magazine, the Wall Street Journal, Architectural Record, and the New York Times.

Adela Gondek, a Lecturer in Climate, in the Climate School at Columbia, teaches public and environmental ethics. A political scientist with specialization in political theory and American politics and policy, she acquired her PhD in the Department of Government at Harvard, with cross-disciplinary study in the law and divinity schools and the Kennedy School of Government. She has served as a legislative analyst in the Massachusetts State Senate, with investigative specialization in consumer product safety, prison reform, and model judicial practice.

Cortney Koenig Worrall is President and CEO of the Waterfront Alliance with expertise in climate resilience policy, campaign planning, community outreach, and public participation processes. Prior to the Waterfront Alliance, Cortney led the National Parks Conservation Association’s (NPCA) northeast office. Among her many achievements, she developed and led
the campaign for Stonewall National Monument, which was designated by President Obama in June 2016. She crafted NPCA’s northeast execution of the campaign to reduce the $12B maintenance backlog affecting national parks—one of many nationally executed campaigns leading to the passage of the Great American Outdoors Act in 2020.