Art of Interference

Lithium plays a key role in the green energy transition. Its extraction, however, comes at considerable costs for the environment and for local communities, particularly in the so-called lithium triangle in Argentina, Bolivia, and Chile. In this episode, we speak with artist and curator Guely Morató Loredo and her collaborator, sound artist Victor Mazón Gardoqui, about two projects that engage with the mining of lithium in South America today, its devastating impact on Indigenous people and sacred sites, and its connection to much older histories of colonial extraction. We also hear from social anthropologist Pablo Ampuero-Ruiz about the rise of electric cars, their reliance on lithium, and the need to develop new ideas of mobility; and from geochemist John Ayers about the challenging water-intense process of lithium extraction.  Host: Lutz Koepnick For more information visit: https://artofinterference.com/ [https://artofinterference.com/]

Diné artist and photographer Will Wilson has been photographing hundreds of abandoned uranium mines and remediation site on the Navajo Nation over the last few years. In this episode, we speak with Will about this project, called “Connecting the Dots for a Just Transition,” and the power of photography to reveal and remediate environmental injustice. We also hear from Leah Lowe, the director of Vanderbilt University’s Curb Center for Art, Enterprise, and Public Policy, which exhibited Will’s work in fall 2024 as part of an ongoing initiative exploring the role of “eco-grief” in the arts. For more information visit: https://artofinterference.com/ [https://artofinterference.com/]

In this final episode of season 2, we talk with dancer and dance scholar Mariama Diagne about the art of “heavy hovering”—the ability of modern ballet and dance to teach us a different way of moving and being on Earth. We discuss efforts to relocate human life to other planets to escape the effects of climate change, the beauty of meeting the challenges of terrestrial gravity, the environmental legacy of Pina Bausch’s dance theater, and the transformative qualities of West-African dance practices. And since this is our last episode for this year, AoI's five team members also take a pause to reflect on their favorite moment of this season . . . and their preferred dance moves.  For more information visit: https://artofinterference.com/ [https://artofinterference.com/]

Smoke is a beautiful—yet sometimes strange, or even terrifying—phenomenon. In today’s episode, we explore how the mysterious qualities of smoke open up possibilities for exploration and better understanding of human relationships with the earth and air. First, we get to know the multi-colored, pyrotechnic smoke sculptures of esteemed artist Judy Chicago, who began producing these works in the late 1960s as a response to the male-centric land art movement. Then, we hear from Bill Fox, the Director of the Center for Art + Environment at the Nevada Museum of Art in Reno; he has worked extensively with Chicago’s smoke sculpture archive, currently housed by the museum. Finally, we feature a conversation with Dave Petersen, a scientist who’s devoted his entire career to understanding smoke and wildfires. For more information visit: https://artofinterference.com/ [https://artofinterference.com/]

“Wind, wind, wind. If you repeat the word wind often enough, then it will blow by itself.” These are the poetic words of this episode’s featured artist, Theo Jansen, who has spent the last three decades creating and evolving his strandbeests—massive PVC creatures that walk down the Dutch coast powered by the wind alone. Wind propels sail boats, kites, turbines, and strandbeests alike, all with invisibility. Join us as we explore how climate change is actually changing winds, discuss on-shore and off-shore wind farming, and dive into the complexities of making wind art.  For more information visit: https://artofinterference.com/ [https://artofinterference.com/]