Are we nature deprived? Interviews with artists

Words by Emilia Sogaard, Lucy Chapman and Freddy Stiefel

Interviewing artists who are exhibiting at “Perceiving Nature”, at the Norman Rea Gallery has shown me the creativity with which artists have expressed their relationship and connectedness with nature. Artist Lucy Chapman harnesses the power of art to convey the majesty and other worldly nature of marine ecosystems, as well as challenging the view that the UK is nature deprived. Speaking also to art student Freddy Stiefel, his artworks exhibited aim to challenge our recognition of nature and how we perceive nature in our everyday lives.

“Gomodna”, Lucy Chapman.

Lucy spoke about her work “Gomodna” exhibited at the Norman Rea Gallery and the theme behind it.

Lucy: It is part of a wider series called “Forever is composed of now”, inspired by the Sussex Kelp Restoration Project, which is a large-scale recovery project of the kelp forest along the Sussex coast. The piece exhibited is a part of this ongoing collection of work that’s looking at UK seaweed and marine ecosystems.

The idea behind these pieces is that we’ve got really amazing and diverse ecosystems and I think in the UK we think of ourselves as really quite nature deprived; there are statistics about us being one of the most nature deprived countries in Europe.

These ecosystems have been damaged by some fishing practices, but there’s loads of work going on to restore them and there’s a lot of research at the moment into how these seaweeds and ecosystems are actually amazing carbon sinks (known as blue carbon) and are fantastic for biodiversity. The work that is being done is a hopeful environmental message and I suppose I wanted to learn more about that and highlight it.

Sussex Kelp Restoration Project logo.

Speaking with Lucy it is clear that artists have the potential to challenge widespread eco-anxiety and champion a local approach, drawing the public’s attention to the incredible bio-diversity within the UK and possibilities for climate action within our shores. Lucy works with scientists and her trans-disciplinary approach brings the climate crisis into the artistic sphere with elements of her original designs going to be featured in the upcoming Blue Marine Foundation’s report on the health of kelp.

Lucy: I work with scientists from University of Sussex who are working on the kelp restoration project. Their enthusiasm and knowledge is really exciting – there are so many dedicated people. One of the things I wanted to do was to show the actual scale of the seaweed. It’s about 2 metres – its huge. These are big plants, they are quite impressive ecosystems, and because they are out of sight, we don’t necessarily engage with the idea of them, their majesty and this whole other world (of marine ecosystems). It’s really compelling and beautiful.

Art can convey that sort of other worldly beauty and majesty of those ecosystems. Its less of a statistic and its more of a kind of (wake-up call) of what is on your doorstep.

Installation view at “Perceiving Nature”, Norman Rea Gallery.

Lucy spoke about how art can offer a sense of hope and provide a different vision for the future of our earth.

Lucy: I think in the context of the climate crisis, art has a role to play, in that we need to go beyond the science and statistics and create new narratives and new ways of engaging with the crisis that are more hopeful and empowering or offer different visions of a different future. We are suffering from this overkill of doom and gloom. Of course, it is really terrifying, and it is awful what’s happening, and a lot of us are heartbroken. But at the same time, we have to appreciate that we don’t know what’s going to happen and there is room for ingenuity and a different future.

I think that is the role of art, to engage with people on that level, instead of terrifying them.

“Two Tone Tree” and “Absent Pink” , Freddy Stiefel.

Reflecting on the engagement with viewers with art, Freddy spoke about how his tree series offered many different interpretations while channelling his obsession with trees.

Freddy: I’ve always had a very deep obsession with trees. I think we look past them, we’re too comfortable with them and they’re actually insane. These natural structures which grow in whatever direction they want. I just think we’re too comfortable with them – they are crazy things.

On a more intimate level, Freddy spoke about the fact that nature has always been a constant in his life, even when is he is living in a different country, displaced from home. Perhaps after visiting “Perceiving Nature” students were similarly inspired to reflect on the same – how nature in their lives has always been there and surrounds them whether they have actively recognised its’ presence or not?

Freddy: I’ve always loved them (trees), and I think they are so individual and there are many parallels to be considered between humans and trees. I’ve grown up (in nature) going on dog walks, so trees were always around me. Even now, the trees I’m seeing in France, are the same I could see in London – they’re everywhere. It’s quite comforting, especially now quite homesick being away. Nature is the same wherever. The sun shining on my balcony is the same sun that would be shining on my parents decking. It makes me feel very connected, which is something I’m quite thankful for.

Opening night of “Perceiving Nature”, photography by Joshua Haining.

Speaking about his artistic process, Freddy spoke about how he works with both photography and painting but views the two mediums as having very different functions. He describes how paintings are the depictions of the spaces in between and the beauty of painting is that you can capture those spaces. While photography is about documentation, paintings are about expressing more liminal spaces.

Freddy: My work is very accidental, and very awkward in the sense that I’m an action painter so it’s all about the process – I’ll throw paint at the painting. I am an acrylic painter, I water down a lot of my paint to make them drip, sometimes I make them far too watery, and they drip over things I liked before, but I would never try and get rid of that, I’d think that was meant to happen, so let’s just leave that. And I think that ties in with nature. Nature does whatever it wants to do, and I think we shouldn’t try and stop that, just like I don’t stop the drips or the unwanted paint on my canvas, so why should we do the same to nature? We should just let it do its thing.

Artists Lucy Chapman and Freddy Stiefel have explored how we as humans relate to the nature around us and their artworks capture the otherworldliness of ecosystems both on land and under the sea. Their artworks will be on display until the 16th February 2024 at the Norman Rea Gallery and I would really recommend you to go visit if you haven’t already!