Between late April to early December, humpback whales migrate from their winter breeding grounds off the coast of South America to the North Pacific Ocean. During the summer months, breaching humpbacks can be spotted locally as they pass through the Monterey Bay. This long voyage is filled with numerous man-made obstacles like environmental toxins, sea ice retreat, underwater noise pollution, and shifting ocean conditions caused by climate change.
UC Santa Cruz’s Institute of the Arts and Sciences (IAS) depicts this dangerous migration route in their new exhibit, titled “Weather and the Whale,” which made its debut on May 29. The exhibit spans across the three galleries and screening room in the IAS building, combining the heartwrenching effects of the climate crisis on animals, Indigenous people and migrants.
Alex Moore, curator and head of academic programs at the IAS, described the installation as a new approach to the dialogue around climate justice.
“The goal is to think about climate change and climate devastation from a multiplicity of perspectives and to be thinking about large-scale issues,” Moore said. “There’s no single answer, but the more people you’re bringing together and the more perspectives you’re bringing together, the more potential there is for solidarity and change.”
The once plain white walls are now covered in handwritten summaries, a detailed timeline, depictions of Indigenous medicinal practices, photographs of migration routes drawn on the legs of Indigenous women and video installations of various Native American heritage stories in Western America. The exhibit outlines experiences and practices of Indigenous groups in South America and California, their history and the current effects of the climate crisis on their lives and immigrants’ lives.
[SLIDE 1] One gallery of the exhibit features black and white photographs of the legs and feet of displaced women living in Medellín, Colombia. On their legs are detailed migration routes that each of these women were forced to take due to armed conflict in the area. [SLIDE 2]: In the center of the exhibit rests an illuminated large glass-top table. Within the display are written accounts of Indigenous Alaskan history paired with photos. An overhead projector displays video compilations whilst portable radios provide audio commentary.
The exhibit’s Monterey Bay section portrays the effects of the climate crisis on sentinel species like humpback whales, sea otters and California sea lions due to sea warming and toxins. With the bay being so close to agricultural lands, pesticide run off along with the 2023 levee breach of the Pajaro River has impacted the habitats and consequentially the animals that reside in the coastal waters.
“Weather and the Whale” is a culmination of a two-year collaboration between the Friedlaender Lab at UCSC and the IAS. This display is the first at IAS that combines scientists’ data and artists’ pieces.
Chloe Lew is one of four UCSC scientists involved in the installation, whose data on bioacoustics in Kotzebue, Alaska was incorporated into the exhibit. The unveiling of the exhibit was the first time her project has been publicly available.
“It is a pretty discouraging time to be engaged in science as priorities seem to shift in the political climate away from what science is telling us,” Lew said. “I continue to be inspired by people around me who continue to be motivated to do the work. Being here today reminds me that people are engaged in science and care in a huge way.”
The exhibit’s combination of scientific research with graphic images of dead whales and people displaced by the climate crisis elicits strong feelings for viewers and artists alike.
“I want people to understand the urgency of how we need to live,” said artist and curator of a video installation within the exhibit, Suné Woods. “We’re very used to things being convenient and comfortable, especially in the United States where we have affected many other countries by the way we live here.”
For the scientists involved in the exhibit, “Weather and the Whale” is an opportunity to present concerning data surrounding the climate crisis. The data shows that the climate crisis is real; it is affecting not just our marine systems, but also the human population.
“If you don’t see what’s going on, it’s harder for you to connect,” attendee Tommy Johnson said. “I feel grief for our environment, but also a slice of hope from the community being able to come together and share their love for the animals.”
