Biography
Stephanie Garon received dual science degrees from Cornell University, then attended Maryland Institute College of Art (MICA). Her environmental art has been exhibited internationally in England, Colombia, South Korea, as well as across the United States. Her writing, a critical aspect of her artistic process, has been published in international literary journals. Her poetry book, Acreage, was published by Akinoga Press in December 2021. She is a Trawick Art Prize winner, an Aspen Institute/Social Art & Justice Fellow, Hamiltonian Gallery fellow, a National Park Service Artist-in-Residence in the Everglades, and recipient of grants including The Foundation for Contemporary Art, The Puffin Foundation Environmental Art, The Lucid Foundation, and Maryland State Arts Council.
Artist Statement
My artwork investigates humanity's interruption of nature. Power. The juxtaposition of natural objects against industrial materials exposes dichotomies of formality/fragility and permanence/impermanence. The natural materials, sourced by hand locally, convey themes of claim, women’s labor, and time.
As ecologically motivated interventions, the physical process of decomposition becomes evident as the artworks change over time and emphasize the vulnerability of nature. These abstracted expressions visualize an uneasy truce. A contemporary twist on the Arte Povera movement, my work addresses climate crisis politics, and mediates attention to the materials themselves. Extensive research, including scientific and cultural investigation, are integrated into each artwork.
Whether on display or shelved for centuries, the mined rock core collection from Passamaquoddy land/Maine are artifacts of claim, commodification, and labor. Counting, order. Numbers and systems. They symbolize the parallel hierarchy found in geological organizational methods, stock market flips for metals, cultural and political power structures embedded deep into the land. The cores represent void. Space that cannot be filled with water, rock, or root in the wake of tremendous, permanent loss from humanity’s interference. The rocks are the single words of the Passamaquoddy language that Dwayne Tomah and Donald Soctomah are working tirelessly to preserve. They are the acreage of pine trees bulldozed for paper mills and drill holes. They are night stars above lakes forming a celestial map. And they are our footsteps.
As the viewer navigates their movement around these artworks, the contemplative space provokes individual ecological consciousness regarding how natural resources are gathered, accumulated, and commodified.
Stephanie Garon received dual science degrees from Cornell University, then attended Maryland Institute College of Art (MICA). Her environmental art has been exhibited internationally in England, Colombia, South Korea, as well as across the United States. Her writing, a critical aspect of her artistic process, has been published in international literary journals. Her poetry book, Acreage, was published by Akinoga Press in December 2021. She is a Trawick Art Prize winner, an Aspen Institute/Social Art & Justice Fellow, Hamiltonian Gallery fellow, a National Park Service Artist-in-Residence in the Everglades, and recipient of grants including The Foundation for Contemporary Art, The Puffin Foundation Environmental Art, The Lucid Foundation, and Maryland State Arts Council.
Artist Statement
My artwork investigates humanity's interruption of nature. Power. The juxtaposition of natural objects against industrial materials exposes dichotomies of formality/fragility and permanence/impermanence. The natural materials, sourced by hand locally, convey themes of claim, women’s labor, and time.
As ecologically motivated interventions, the physical process of decomposition becomes evident as the artworks change over time and emphasize the vulnerability of nature. These abstracted expressions visualize an uneasy truce. A contemporary twist on the Arte Povera movement, my work addresses climate crisis politics, and mediates attention to the materials themselves. Extensive research, including scientific and cultural investigation, are integrated into each artwork.
Whether on display or shelved for centuries, the mined rock core collection from Passamaquoddy land/Maine are artifacts of claim, commodification, and labor. Counting, order. Numbers and systems. They symbolize the parallel hierarchy found in geological organizational methods, stock market flips for metals, cultural and political power structures embedded deep into the land. The cores represent void. Space that cannot be filled with water, rock, or root in the wake of tremendous, permanent loss from humanity’s interference. The rocks are the single words of the Passamaquoddy language that Dwayne Tomah and Donald Soctomah are working tirelessly to preserve. They are the acreage of pine trees bulldozed for paper mills and drill holes. They are night stars above lakes forming a celestial map. And they are our footsteps.
As the viewer navigates their movement around these artworks, the contemplative space provokes individual ecological consciousness regarding how natural resources are gathered, accumulated, and commodified.
Photo by Jill Fannon