“Perennial Land – The Data Forest” an immersive video and sound experiential installation will kick off at BCC with an opening reception in the Hall of Fame Art Gallery (Bliss Hall) at 12 noon on Thursday, March 21, 2024. The show will run through May 16.

Combining the beauty of various forest environments with the importance of data-driven insights into a human’s impact on nature, this multi-climate forest will feature tech and tools about resources and equity that are seamlessly integrated into the environment like trees.

“We want to push aside the modern habit of thinking of nature–culture divide, decolonize technology and highlight the ways landscape contributes to social, political and psychic ideas of space,” said Patricia Cazorla, curator for the exhibit, which was conceived and directed by Laia Cabrera & Isabelle Duverger “The vulnerability of the environment is directly related to that of certain communities. Nature does not need us. We need nature.”

“Perennial Land” is a part of Care and Climate Justice, a series of exhibitions that take place at Sarah Lawrence College and Bronx Community College in winter and spring 2024, as a collaboration between Groundwork Hudson Valley, The Center for the Urban River at Beczak, Bronx Community College, and Sarah Lawrence College. The program was made possible by a grant from the Mellon Foundation.

About the Artists:

Laia Cabrera is an award-winning filmmaker and video artist based in New York, working in the fields of art Installations-new cinema. Her wide range of artworks, from traditional and experimental filmmaking, visual poetry, virtual reality, interactive art and immersive projection mapping installations, has been commissioned by major institutions and presented worldwide in leading venues, art galleries and festivals. Identity and consciousness have been constant themes in her work, exploring concepts of otherness, symbolism, and hope, the art of seeing and the nature of belonging.

Isabelle Duverger is an award-winning French painter and installation artist based in New York. Her work includes paintings, public art, immersive interactive video installations, video-art and animation. Her work is focused on the relationship between emotions and body language, the observation of patterns, imaginary landscapes and how the human presence interacts in it, and the pursuit of new languages through technology.

The duo’s recent installations include the world’s largest video interactive public art installation “The Now” (Times Square, New York); the interactive “Dream-e-scape” (Flutter Gallery, Los Angeles; Microwave Festival Honk Kong; Film Criticism Conference, Riyadh), and immersive visual poem “Qualia – You Matter to Me” (Prelude Festival NYC). Their work was presented in the Spring/Break Art Show, Times Square Plaza, St John the Divine Cathedral, NJPAC, Teatros del Canal, Madrid, Fabra i Coats Contemporary Art Center, Barcelona, Tempietto Di Bramante, Roma and Hong Kong City Hall.

About the Hall of Fame Art Gallery:

The Hall of Fame Art Gallery at Bronx Community College is committed to showcasing diverse and innovative works of art while providing a platform for engaging with contemporary social and cultural dialogues. Through exhibitions and events, the gallery aims to inspire and foster creativity in the Bronx community and beyond. The gallery is funded in part by the Art & Music Department of Bronx Community College, the BCC Art & Music Consortium and BCC, Inc.