Most of us, our families, are migrants. Myriad and complex reasons drive people to a new home, a new life. With these migrations come narratives, stories of longing and dreaming, of loss, loneliness, and discovery. Water is a character in many of our stories, even more so as the climate shift dramatically accelerates and sea level rises. Over one third of the total human population on Earth lives within 100km/60 miles of an oceanic coast and it has been estimated that one-fifth of the world’s population will become climate refugees by 2100 due to rising sea levels. When we share our stories, we invite each other to share our humanity. Coasts are continually shifting, much faster than our oh-so-human behavior. Whether we change our behaviors or not, we must find compassion for displaced climate refugees if we are to thrive. This exhibition is a way of inviting the viewer to keep these narratives in their conscious mind and heart.
The water is rising.
Cities, islands, and countries are disappearing,
forcing movement.
Cities, islands, and countries are disappearing,
forcing movement.
The water devours.
Your home is becoming uninhabitable,
requiring adaptation to frequent flooding
and a vanishing shore,
threatening your way of life.
The water is relentless.
You are vulnerable;
one of the 267 million people
living less than 2 meters above sea level.
The water displaces.
It is time to go.
Your home is becoming uninhabitable,
requiring adaptation to frequent flooding
and a vanishing shore,
threatening your way of life.
The water is relentless.
You are vulnerable;
one of the 267 million people
living less than 2 meters above sea level.
The water displaces.
It is time to go.
Lisa Beth Robinson is the proprietor of Somnambulist Tango Press, making artists books, fine art, chapbooks, and broadsides. She works in a variety of media that includes handmade paper, letterpress printing, linoleum carving, and fused glass.
Her ongoing collaboration with sculptor Kristin Thielking examines ocean health/conservation, wave science, and shipwrecks as a reflection of the human condition. She is interested in the interconnectedness of things, particularly with regard to the environment. Robinson, an Associate Professor at East Carolina University in Greenville NC, is a member of the Catching a Wave collective. Additionally, Robinson’s research presents Colony Collapse Disorder as the metaphor for global sociopolitical acts.
The exhibition will run from February 7-February 25, 2022 in Longwood University's Bedford Gallery.