“The Living Room” started with the idea of having a spot in “Wasteland”, the climate anxiety themed haunted house, where you could “turn your back” on the exhibits. Initially this was going to be portrayed by a comfy chair and where you could watch tv in the house. I was given a full room in the haunted house to follow through with this.

 

I had no statement to make about the idea of turning your back on climate issues. There is often little one person can do about climate change and there is a lot of stress and negativity in the movement because of that. The tv and turning your back on things was not meant as a commentary on coping mechanisms or negligence, but on the difficult of turning your back on climate guilt.

 

The idea evolved when I asked my friend and activist Antonia to join my room. We collaborated to make a divided room. and the final artist statement looked like this:

 

Statement:

This piece is inspired by the contrasting narratives within the environmental movement. Central to the room is a TV and couch giving participants a chance to relax. The room is split in two around this scene, so two contrasting narratives can be palpably felt. One side of the room depicts the narrative of chaotic blaming and shaming, while the other side depicting a narrative of unity and critical hope. An invitation to paint allows the rooms inner dialogue to evolve as people add to the conversation.

 

Bio:

 

This room was a collaboration between Antonia Paquin and me (Will O’Connell). Antonia is a writer and outspoken environmental activist. Her painting and poetry shed a new uplifting perspective on existence and environmental guilt. I approached this room as a member of some proactive environmental communities, including the one behind Waste Land, which have brought me a lot of joy and relieved some of my own climate guilt.