Naziha Mestaoui by Patrick Rohs
Sociology as a Crucial Concept
In order to convince the public to be more environmentally aware, one must convince them of a completely different social framework. Society cannot simply tweak its current status; rather, it must adopt a new way of life. However, such a dramatic change is hard to implement. Although the evidence of climate change should be convincing in itself, scientific fact is not exciting enough to inspire revolutionary change. Revolutionary change comes from the discovery of alternate ways of thinking. For example, one of the most dramatic revolutions that occurred in Europe was the French revolution. This phenomenon changed the entire organization of French government and society. It was also a direct result of Enlightenment ideas that discredited the status quo. As a result, I believe that sociology is one of the most powerful actors in creating change. For this reason, Environmental Sociology is our world’s best chance in providing a better future.In An Environmental Sociology for the Anthropocene, Gary Bowden makes an interesting argument for a new way of viewing sociology. Previously, sociology has largely ignored the entire Anthropocene when discovering new ways to organize society. Bowden quotes various examples of sociological theory that he believes to fit this description, including Marxism. He complains that these theories fail to recognize humans’ biophysical environment on a fundamental basis and, “treat modern societies as ‘exempt’ from ecological constraints.” (Bowden) As a result of this inattention to the natural world, Bowden cites two scholars that present a different way to study sociology. Catton and Dunlap, along with other sociologists, shape a new sociology- Environmental Sociology. The aim of this creation is to view society and nature as somewhat separate, yet interacting on a ‘casual’ basis. In this point of view, it is impossible to overlook the human ecological footprint.
With that being said, there are few visual artists that can incorporate the ideas of Environmental Sociology into the framework of their art. However, Naziha Mestaoui uses motion, technology, and interaction to effectively accomplish this goal.
Introducing Naziha Mestaoui
Naziha Mestaoui is a Paris-based artist that has been trained in to fields of architecture and technology. As an up-and-coming artist, she helped found a talented group of artists called the Laboratory for Architecture and Urbanism in 1997. This group aimed to, “examine the influence of advanced technologies in the forms, methods and content of art.” (Linkedin) The members of this group have backgrounds in architecture-giving them a unique approach in creating art. Their approach focuses on the concept of ‘space’ in an information age. The group of artists refers to their technique as MetaDeSIGN. (Muriel Guepin gallery)Electronic Shadow
After creating this unique group of artists and creating art with them for three years, she moved on to the next stage of her career. She decided to leave this group and combine her talents with that of Yacine Ait Kaci, forming the Electronic Shadow Duo. Yacine Ait Kaci, born in Paris, studied graphic design, multi-media, and video at Ensad Art School. After attending art school, he went on to have a notable career in French television. (ElectronicShadow)With the creation of Electronic Shadow in 2000, Kaci and Mestaoui embarked on a mission to share their abilities with the world. They started to create art that incorporates a pluridisciplinary approach that “merges both space and image, material and light in the most diverse contexts from art to architecture, design, scenography…”(ElectronicShadow.com) As a result of their multi-disciplinary work, they were awarded an honorable mention at the Ars Electronica Festival in 2005. Just one year after that, they won the Grand prize in the Japan Media Art Festival in the art section. Although their work has been widely successful in multiple different countries, the real success lies within their most influential Anthropocene works.
History of Anthropocentric Thought
It is self-evident that the three Abrahamic religions of the world are historically anthropocentric. As a result, the environment that does not include the human is somewhat neglected. Although this is true, with the election of Pope Francis in 2013 the Catholic Church is expressing the importance of environmental concerns. As one of the three largest organized religions in the world, the Catholic Church has initiated a giant leap for the mentality of mankind. Furthermore, the Catholic Church oftentimes uses art to convey ideas or arguments. As a student of Xavier University, I had the rare opportunity to study art in Rome. During my course, I researched and viewed religious art all over the Vatican. In my opinion, the paintings created by Rafael and Michelangelo transcend words. These breathtaking works of art accomplish something that words cannot express. For that reason, the Vatican is actively involved in commissioning art that expresses their teachings. The Vatican’s interest in commissioning art recently extended to the very talented Naziha Mestaoui in 2017. As a result, Mestaoui created an installation commissioned by the Vatican to bring together traditional anthropocentric, Catholic art and contemporary mapping of a virtual forest. The installation attempts to merge anthropocentric and biocentric ideas in order to promote awareness of environmental challenges.Mestaoui's Influential Works
Though awareness is a step in change, it does not provide the motor for change. Mestaoui; however, attempts to provide art works that are interactive while creating a way for the audience to get involved. Mestaoui is the creator of two very similar projects- One Beat One Tree and One Heart One Tree.One Beat One Tree was a project done in several different places in the time span from 2012-2013. (NazihaMestaoui) In these various locations, including one United Nations Earth Summit, Mestaoui created installations which project virtual forests onto three panels made from twine. When the audience would enter the room, there was a platform in front of the center panel. The audience then would stand on that platform, which was sensing the audience member’s presence. As the audience member continued to stand on that platform, an active projection of a tree growing would be projected onto the center panel. After this virtual tree grows fully, another real tree would be planted in a reforestation project somewhere around the world. In this sense, Mestaoui is combining the virtual and the real while also providing an interactive way for her audience to get involved in environmental activism.
One Heart One Tree was a large-scale project with very influential partners, including: The United Nations, the French Government, and the Parisian Government. The project is built on a very similar concept to One Beat One Tree, but it has the unique advantage of reaching a very large audience. In 2015, for about a week, a virtual forest was projected onto the Eifel Tower during dark hours. To go along with this, a phone application was created in order for the Parisian public to participate. The application allowed the public to buy any number of trees they wanted. As a result of their purchase, a virtual tree would be projected onto the Eifel Tower on which their name would appear. The money that was used to purchase the tree would then go to fund the planting of an actual tree in one of seven countries around the world.
What is Anthropocene Art?
These works of art are the epitome of Anthropocene Art. They are able to bring together anthropocentric mentalities and biocentric mentalities in order to overcome a fictitious divide between the two. Also, these works are able to create awareness while also being the motor of the change that it promotes. Naziha Mestaoui is the most influential Anthropocene artist and the best at what she does. For that reason, I believe that the definition of Anthropocene Art should be modeled around her work. Anthropocene Art, first and foremost, must bring elements of the environment into urban spaces. In doing so, it will merge the urban and environmental mentalities instead of promoting separation between the two. With that being said, it must also be the mechanism of the change that it tries to inspire.Works Cited
Mestaoui, Naziha. NazihaMestaoui.com, 2017, nazihamestaoui.com/. Accessed 1 Nov. 2017.Bowden, Gary. "An Environmental Sociology for the Anthropocene." Canadian Sociological Association, 2017, pp. 48-49. Accessed 1 Nov. 2017.
"Naziha Mestaoui." Linkedin, 2017. Accessed 17 Nov. 2017.
electronicshadow.com, 2017, www.electronicshadow.com. Accessed 20 Nov. 2017.
"LAB[AU]." Muriel Guépin Gallery, 2017. Accessed 20 Nov. 2017.
Mestaoui, Naziha. 1heart1tree.org, 2015. Accessed 1 Nov. 2017.
