Our in-house interview with Christopher Baker, founder and owner of Baker & Company, and his daughter Esther Harrison, who is otherwise responsible for editing and managing the B&C Zine.
In this conversation, she shares the profound experiences she had during The Arctic Circle Residency, a unique artist residency that combines art, nature and climate. The Arctic Circle Residency is an annual program for artists, authors, scientists,
architects and educators. Together they sailed for two weeks through the high Arctic Archipelago of Svalbard
and the Arctic Ocean on board a specially equipped expedition ship. Her observations and insights illuminate the transformative power of art and its ability to emotionally and powerfully convey global challenges such as climate change.
What inspired you to apply for The Arctic Circle Residency, and how did you prepare for such a unique journey?
The inspiration came a long time ago via an artist, Lena von Goedeke, I interviewed for my online art magazine Coeur & Art in 2018, I think. I had read about her being part of this expedition, artist residency, sailing the arctic.
What stood out for me was the fleeting moment of phone connection when anchoring in Ny-Ålesund, the world’s northernmost year-round research station, that downloaded exactly one email on her phone informing her she had been picked for a prestigious art prize.
I thought that scenario was quite special, so I interviewed her. After our exchanges she urged me to apply to The Arctic Circle Residency. And so I did. I was accepted with my project in 2020 and was supposed to sail the same year that autumn, but then the pandemic hit.
What was your first impression of the High-Arctic Svalbard Archipelago when you arrived?
Very emotional.Outlandish, but also somewhat like coming home.
Can you describe a moment during the expedition that profoundly impacted you personally or creatively?
That is difficult as there were so many. I work site-specifically, therefore spontaneously with what I find, so it is always rooted in my trust that I will be directed to the right spot. One afternoon a small group of us landed on a small, rocky, hilly island. Everything was covered deeply in snow. I was drawn to the shore to create a sculpture inspired by the tradition of inuksuit which are made from rocks.
All of a sudden, I realized the “rocks” I was climbing over towards the shoreline were in fact huge chunks of ice.
I started to brush off the snow to see their forms and characteristics. And then I saw, still covered in snow, a distinct shape. When I pulled it out, it was a perfectly heart-shaped ice frame in a workable size. That was an exceptional moment. One of countless others.
How did being surrounded by such a diverse group of artists, scientists, and educators influence your perspective and work?
To be among peers like this on a vessel for two weeks was extremely inspiring.
To share and work together, create and laugh and experience what we experienced morphed us into one organism.
We were 32 artists, writers, even one bee specialist, from all over the world. We got very close and still are. We have a WhatsApp group and we communicate with each other daily. By far the best experience I have had in a residency setting.
Did the Arctic environment challenge or inspire your creative process? If so, how?
It inspires you in many, often surprisingly different ways. It is hard to put this into words. The silence, the colors of the glaciers and sea ice… One has to be there to understand it.
What new ideas or projects emerged from your time aboard the expedition vessel?
I am working on these currently and will undoubtably continue to do so for years to come. What I can say is that it spans different media. Writing, video work, painting, and most prominently, grid work to just name a few.
How did the residency deepen your understanding of climate change and its impacts on the Arctic?
On a cellular level.
How do you plan to incorporate the insights gained from the Arctic into your future work or advocacy efforts?
I am trying to figure out how to use AI and AR to highlight and preserve indigenous languages and archive oral histories.
Also to wrap my head around how AI can collect data to assess changes in Arctic ecosystems, that then in return can support timely intervention. I am curious to experience how it will transform visually into my work but as usual I trust the process.
Did you observe any striking examples of the environmental challenges facing the Arctic region?
Yes. We managed to make landfall at the end of our journey on the exact same glacier as we started our expedition on which was then completely covered in snow due to the weather. When we returned there, there was no snow at all. Only the glaciers on rocks. A group of us landed there to go on a long hike. At the landing site, we came to a spot where you can see the actual glacier ice ending. To see that right in front of you left a deep impression on all of us. We hiked up next to this glacier on a stone and rock covered mountain.
All these rocks used to be covered by million-year-old ice.
Which means you find fossils there! Can you imagine how old these are and how long these fossils and rocks have been covered by glacier ice before…
How did the collaborative environment of the residency foster connections or inspire interdisciplinary projects?
I am fortunate enough to collaborate with the award-winning interdisciplinary new media artist Nancy Baker Cahill who is based in L.A. Her hybrid practice focuses on systemic power, consciousness, the human body and climate change. Our collaboration included me bringing one of her incredible immersive AR (Augmented Reality Art Works) to Svalbard.
We geotagged it right above the Svalbard Seed Vault which is located a short drive outside of Longyearbyen and which is also called the ‘doomsday’ seed vault.
It was designed as an impregnable deep-freeze to protect the world’s most precious seeds from climate change, wars and natural disasters. But as this project is still in progress, I can’t share more details at this time.
What role do you think artists play in addressing global challenges like climate change?
A major role. Huge really. It is the role of artists to address and highlight catastrophes like climate change. Still calling it a challenge is part of the problem, as we are long beyond it being a “challenge.”
Art accesses the perception of the viewer in multiple ways news or scientific facts cannot.
Art can affect the viewer on an emotional level, not a logical one. Without responses that are rooted in emotions connected to the understanding that everything is interconnected, and nature is literally everything … it is incomprehensible to me that climate activists and outspoken artists are deemed radical because they want to protect the earth.
What is one thing you learned about yourself during this residency?
That my way of looking at nature and creating art, shining a light onto the earth is not just beautiful, but impactful and therefore timely and needed.
How would you describe the legacy or impact of The Arctic Circle program on the creative and scientific communities?
It’s ongoing. Never-ending. Every artist who attended the Arctic Circle Residency has been changed forever, I dare say. Therefore, the impact it has can’t be highlighted enough.
The ripple effect it creates goes far beyond the expedition of two weeks itself.
It created and still creates a legacy that can’t be underestimated. It is what I call the transformational power of art. The residency was established in 2009 and there are up to 3 expeditions every year with always around 30 artists on board… so yeah… you can call it an army of artists passionate about preserving the Arctic and therefore the world.
If you could revisit the Arctic or participate in another residency, what would you do differently or focus on next?
Nothing!
