This series continues to explore ideas of the interconnection of the health of the body and the environment. It focuses on the element of air, specifically as breath, one of our most intimate acts.

I questioned how to describe the profound emotions felt in nature while also addressing the psychology of the climate crisis since these images came from seasons of fires and air pollution. The poetry of words and images brings more emotional resonance for me to describe an internal and external landscape. The work becomes a means to express joy, longing, and desire and to begin to understand the current and past physical and emotional loss to generations.

As the images float, the words become ephemeral like breath, as do memories of the land and sky. Word poems are created and recreated by the airflow and human presence in a shared connection to inspire a new language. Words disappear in the image, representing conversations unfinished in environmental discussions and with each other. The collage of images and words becomes an attempt at a new language where previous communication methods have failed. This series also represents our current systems of connection and disconnection with the earth and the resilience of nature to adapt to our interventions.

The body breathes in relation to the earth, with systemic injustice impacting this basic need to sustain life. The urgency to work toward a world where all can thrive is now even more apparent.

KATIE KALKSTEIN

KATIE KALKSTEIN