Claire Cansick: You and I Are Earth

14 Oct 2023-14 Apr 2024

Overview

What effect do we have on the landscapes around us? You and I Are Earth charts the devastating effects of climate change and the human impact on the environment across the world.

Featuring over 40 paintings by Norfolk-based artist Claire Cansick, the exhibition depicts a spectrum of climate-related catastrophes, including wildfires, floods, droughts, historic storms, snowfall, war, deforestation, erosion, the proliferation of tornadoes, and the alarming warming of the Arctic.

Each artwork tells a compelling story of nature’s relentless struggle against human actions and inactions.

‘You and I Are Earth’ is the culmination of a year-long project on global climate change weather events, a series of paintings based on the portrayal of these events through the TV news and social media.

‘With this in mind, the intention is for the collection of paintings to be exhibited in its entirety in chronological order, with patterns of weather moving sequentially across the paintings, a repetition and rhythm will become apparent. In exhibiting all the work in this way I feel there will be a power in the magnitude of climate change, which will resonate with the viewer. I hope that a clear realisation and urgency to act will emerge as people see the sheer spread of locations, with rich and poor countries being united in the issues.’ – Claire Cansick

Through her distinctive use of a limited color palette comprising just four hues, she unifies her diverse body of work, emphasizing the interconnectedness of these global issues.

This exhibition serves as a call to action, imploring us to reevaluate our relationship with nature and to take immediate steps to mitigate the devastating effects of climate change before it’s too late.

About Clare Cansick:

Claire Cansick is an oil painter living and working in Norfolk, the county of her birth and where she grew up. Cansick’s work is inspired by her immediate surroundings, poignant memories and current affairs, including climate change. Renowned for using a palette of four recessive (rather than dominant) colours, to explore and create mood and ambience, she works from photos and drawings as source material. After graduating from Great Yarmouth School of Art and Norwich University of the Arts with a BA in Printmaking, Cansick forged her reputation as a (self-taught) oil painter.

Claire has also run art galleries, and exhibited widely throughout the UK. Her exhibition at Firstsite is her first in a public institution. In 2017, she was invited to become a member of The Arborealists, a group of contemporary artists inspired by trees, forests and woods.

Artists