By Kate Trudeau, For the Cordova Times
As the months progress we expect the weather to get colder. We hunker down with our tea and yarn or thread, preparing for a long winter of crafting. However, many are wondering what exactly this winter will bring us. Will there be snow? Will there be enough snow to ski and do the other things we enjoy? Are winters getting warmer, or are we just idealizing the past?
Changing weather patterns are on a lot of people’s minds lately. These changes can bring about confusion, fear and even grief. Regardless of our beliefs on the causes of climate change, we share concerns over how it will impact our lives and livelihoods.
One way to deal with the intangibility of emotions is to create something solid with our hands.
The Science Center is hosting a Stitch Your Science exhibit this winter. We welcome fiber artists of all mediums to submit a piece that chronicles their experience with climate change.
What might this look like? Anything you want it to look like! This is meant to be a creative exercise to help folks grapple with their thoughts and feelings about climate change.
Some ideas include data visualization; such as a temperature blanket with different rows symbolizing temperature trends. You could whip out your needles to create an applique of a personal experience with climate. Knit a cry for climate justice. Use your needles to lay out a plan for climate resiliency. Quilt a celebration of a landscape you want to preserve. Or if you’re like many, the tangle of emotions can only be expressed in a tangle of mediums.
Pieces are due to the Science Center by March 15. Bring your piece to the Science Center anytime Monday-Friday between 9 a.m. and 5 p.m. Be sure to include your name and contact information with your piece so it can be returned after the exhibit. Artists are encouraged to provide an artist’s statement explaining their piece as well.
Pieces will be on display from March to June.
If you have any questions please email ktrudeau@pwssc.org.
Kate Trudeau is the education specialist at the Prince William Science Center.
