ANTARCTIC ARTISTS & WRITERS COLLECTIVE
BIG BLEND RADIO INTERVIEW: Antarctic Artists and Writers Collective cofounders Glenn McClure and Michelle Schwengel-Regala discuss their experience in Antarctica. Glenn is a composer/musician who was a National Parks Arts Foundation (NPAF) artist-in-residence at Hawaii Volcanoes National Park, and Michelle is a scientific illustrator, fiber artist, naturalist, and NPAF Invitation Artist. Listen to or download the podcast on Podbean, SoundCloud.com, or YouTube.com.
A group of past participants in the National Science Foundation’s Antarctic Artists and Writers Program has officially organized as the Antarctic Artists and Writers Collective (AAWC). The group comprises artists and writers who have traveled to Antarctica through the program over the past 40 years. The AAWC’s mission is to inspire and educate the public about Antarctica and its scientific exploration through collaborations in the arts. More information and a list of current members can be found at the Collective’s website: https://www.aawcollective.com/.
Since the early 1980s, over 120 artists, performers, and writers have traveled to the seventh continent on a zero-dollar grant, using their creative talents to tell the story of this largely unexplored continent through art, music, writing, and performance. The AAWC is a collaborative effort to bring those talents together and share their work with the public at large. Through the Arts, the AAWC artists and writers convey the visceral experience of an extreme and remote environment few people get to visit in person in words, images, sound, and multimedia installations, informed by their interactions with the scientists conducting research there.
Antarctic Artists
As artists who share a unique experience and an interdisciplinary perspective, group members plan to create a network for future collaboration, including virtual and physical exhibitions, concerts, performances, lectures, and publications. The Collective’s website is serving as a comprehensive central resource and directory of projects produced through the Antarctic Artists & Writers Program, something that has not existed to date. Currently, the AAWC has 69 members. The Collective has engaged an independent curator to prepare an online exhibition, “Adequate Earth: Artists and Writers in Antarctica,” consisting of works by the 13 founding members. Featured on the AAWC website from January 28 – May 22, 2021, a series of virtual events will be presented in conjunction with the exhibition.
With the official launch of the website, the group has also launched social media channels: Instagram: @antarcticcollective Facebook: @antarcticcollective Twitter: @AntarcticAWC.
