With its mountains and waterways, Chattanooga is well known for its natural beauty. Chattanooga’s various ecosystems are apparent whenever one wanders under the lush green canopy above a mountain trail or floats down the river catching glimpses of wildlife on the shore and under the water’s surface. But what happens when outside forces interfere with those ecosystems? What happens when manmade interruptions like the damming of rivers, construction, or pollution, or the introduction of invasive species upset the natural balance of ecosystems?
North Carolina artist and naturalist April Flanders is creating a two-part site-specific art installation exploring that very question. Beginning August 16, the Hunter Museum welcomes Impact Zones, in which Flanders employs printmaking, vinyl and papercutting to explore the disruption of the equilibrium in our ecosystems. Utilizing forest imagery, Flanders transforms the stairwell leading into the mansion galleries. The large, color-coated leaves covering the stairwell walls are marred, referencing the decimating blight suffered by the American chestnut trees in the 1940s when a tiny parasitic fungus was transported to the United Stated from overseas.
The second part of Flanders’ installation is a simulated underwater ecosystem in the museum’s east art lounge which overlooks the Tennessee River. Mimicking a river ecosystem with imagery of aquatic plants and animal shapes, the installation features layers of color and texture and examines the relationship of the biological community of interacting organisms found in a river ecosystem with forces that disrupt that community.
There’s also an opportunity for museum guests to add their own perspectives to the installation in the east art lounge. Utilizing painted, magnetized wooden pieces that share information about different native and invasive species, visitors can make their own unique contribution, ensuring that the installation will be in constant flux - just like the ever-changing Tennessee River ecosystem below the museum.
Stop by the Hunter soon to experience Impact Zones and all the other fresh takes the Hunter has to offer. Or plan your visit today at HunterMuseum.org.
by Hannah Brawley
North Carolina artist and naturalist April Flanders is creating a two-part site-specific art installation exploring that very question. Beginning August 16, the Hunter Museum welcomes Impact Zones, in which Flanders employs printmaking, vinyl and papercutting to explore the disruption of the equilibrium in our ecosystems. Utilizing forest imagery, Flanders transforms the stairwell leading into the mansion galleries. The large, color-coated leaves covering the stairwell walls are marred, referencing the decimating blight suffered by the American chestnut trees in the 1940s when a tiny parasitic fungus was transported to the United Stated from overseas.
The second part of Flanders’ installation is a simulated underwater ecosystem in the museum’s east art lounge which overlooks the Tennessee River. Mimicking a river ecosystem with imagery of aquatic plants and animal shapes, the installation features layers of color and texture and examines the relationship of the biological community of interacting organisms found in a river ecosystem with forces that disrupt that community.
There’s also an opportunity for museum guests to add their own perspectives to the installation in the east art lounge. Utilizing painted, magnetized wooden pieces that share information about different native and invasive species, visitors can make their own unique contribution, ensuring that the installation will be in constant flux - just like the ever-changing Tennessee River ecosystem below the museum.
Stop by the Hunter soon to experience Impact Zones and all the other fresh takes the Hunter has to offer. Or plan your visit today at HunterMuseum.org.
by Hannah Brawley
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