A STRANGE KIND OF LOVE

A Commemorative Project of the 50th Anniversary of Love Canal

As a means of introducing ourselves and one of our major current works,
we wanted to create an overview of this community–based environmental health project

It commemorates the 50th Anniversary of Love Canal,
all that continues and what else has been happening
and what is yet to come...

Throughout the years, we have continued to follow with great interest and concern
other community wide impacted sites and most recently,
the ever–increasing variety of trauma–affected communities throughout the country.
Unfortunately, these situations only seem to be proliferating,
as in the water issues in Flint, Michigan, the fires of California, RR derailments,
floods and tornadoes throughout the South and Midwest,
recurrent shootings, hate crimes and so many other traumatizing occurrences.

As the media refocuses on the latest story, the prior still existing communities
become forgotten, remain hidden or unremedied
as the community health and well-being continues to deteriorate further.

Below is a brief project description, relevant links and contact information.

CoLabART’s 50th-Anniversary commemorative project of the environmental disaster known
as Love Canal—the poisoning of an American community—ushered in the EPA’s Superfund.
It will detail additional traumatized communities throughout the country.
Initially, there will be a number of sites representing demo prototypes
choosen to createan online, methodological best practices manual
developed from the process,
which will facilitate other communities responses.

Using a community–based methodology designed for rapid sector coordination,
constituency–wide involvement, multi-generational citizenry empowerment and political action.

Each community selected will represent many with similar issues/experiences—thus
facilitating linkages and enlarged participation not only from the surrounding communities
but those with similar issues throughout the country.

Relevant institutions, organizations, specialists, etc., will be an essential aspect of this social praxis
while each of the designated venues will produce restorative activities, exhibitions, cultural events,
online linkages, informational materials as well as garner social and traditional media attention.

STRANGE LOVE
Project Index

ArtCures
Art Resources Together
Community Unified Recovery Emergency Services

CoLabART’s art practice has always been informed by the spirituality of the land, the American sense of place tradition as well as the pervasive encroachment in the name of progress. Our commitment to the environment and future well-being of the earth put us on the path to incorporate these aspects into our collaborative artwork that was begun during our first Residency Fellowships to Yaddo, Saratoga Springs NY. In the fall of 1978, having just arrived, an article in the Saratogian caught our attention: in Niagara Falls NY a young mother—by the name of Lois Gibbs—together with the Homeowners Association was breaking news and our decision then and there to travel across the state had a profound impact on our lives. We met with the community, recorded their stories and documented the site before it was closed off to the public—producing the only art imagery from that locale. Other subsequent, environmental documentation followed—including the GE Moreau toxic site in South Glens Falls NY.

At present, we are in the preliminary stages of developing resources, identifying funding possibilities, creating Strange Love’s presence on our viewart.com site, forming an advisory committee and so on. The undertaking will involve many facets over a more than four-year period beginning in January of 2019—building out as it progresses.

In addition to exhibitions, an ever–increasing, online presence with linkages to informational sources—the project will utilize social media, printed materials, earned-income merchandise, book and documentary—funding permitting.

CoLabART would welcome having your involvement or input,
which could only serve to enhance this timely project:

strangelove@viewart.com

Art Summary

CoLabART—Lynn Small + Dennis Paul’s viewart was one of the earliest artist presence [1994] on the internet—designing an ever-changing, expandable site reflecting mixed-media artworks, transmedia, immersive installations and conceptualizations. Viewart draws upon our travels, experiences confronting world issues and the wealth of new tools and brushes through the emergence of new-media. It celebrates the spirit of the land, the myths, codas of ancient civilizations, the capacity of the human mind to dream, imagine and create. Our practice requires years of site-specific documentation, research in archives/libraries and the synthesis of data. CoLabART’s endeavors benefit from contributions of artists, musicians, writers, performers and reaching out to the scientific and academic communities. Lynn—a lifelong artist—is a four-time finalist for the Gottlieb grant and an art honors graduate of New York’s The High School of Music and Art and New York University. Dennis—a photographer and new-media artist—in 1977 established the Development Office for NYC’s Department of Cultural Affairs and in1980 created the development syllabus and taught at NYU’s Post-Graduate Museum Studies Program until 1985. We have lived, worked, exhibited and lectured in New York, Europe, Mexico and Los Angeles—our art is included in many public and private collections.

For more information…

Visit
viewart.com

and

vimeo.com/CoLabART

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