As artists, we can help, visually and intellectually, to make people understand that, at some point, we have to accept that it is our collective impact that is putting the whole planet in jeopardy.
Interpretation
Artists have a responsibility to convey the message of environmental impact and collective responsibility to society.
In this quote, Edward Burtynsky emphasizes the role of artists in raising awareness about the environmental issues that humanity faces. He suggests that through their work, artists can help society comprehend the critical nature of our shared actions and their consequences on the planet, advocating for a collective acceptance of responsibility in addressing these challenges.
In practice
In a speech at an environmental conference, you could say, 'As artists, we can help, visually and intellectually, to make people understand their collective impact on the planet.'
Water, like many other resources, is harvested, transported and used throughout all aspects of society. Unlike other resources, water is critical to the survival of all forms of life. The underlying question that sits at the core of my exploration is to what degree can we shape water before it begins to shape us.
Like all animals, human beings have always taken what they want from nature. But we are the rogue species. We are unique in our ability to use resources on a scale and at a speed that our fellow species can't.
Our planetary system is affected by a magnitude of force as powerful as any naturally occurring global catastrophe, but one caused solely by a single species: us.
Many of our greatest musicians abandoned all of their aesthetic objectives to try to become pertinent. And, at the end of the day, they never became pop stars. I counter stated that very strongly, and I continue to do that.
I don't think punk fashion is a specter or overemphasized - it made a big impression, as there had never been anything like it before.
Whenever you listen to a piece of music, what you are actually doing is hearing the latest sentence in a very long story you’ve been listening to - all the pieces of music you’ve ever heard.
I like racing but food and pictures are more thrilling. I can't give them up. In racing you can be certain, to the last thousandth of a second, that someone is the best, but with a film or a recipe, there is no way of knowing how all the ingredients will work out in the end. The best can turn out to be awful and the worst can be fantastic. Cooking is like performing and performing like cooking.
From the point of view of art, the butcher and the victim are equal as people. You need to see the people.
The picture is not made by the photographer, the picture is more good or less good in function of the relationship that you have with the people you photograph.
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