On the eve of COP28 in the United Arab Emirates, NYU Abu Dhabi Art Gallery considers the intersection of human-planet interactions in art. the only constant brings together large projects ranging from poignant large-scale landscapes to sprawling installations considering our impact on the planet. Curated by Maya Allison (Executive Director of NYUAD Art Gallery), this exhibition is part of her ongoing study of landscape in contemporary art.

The artists here confront the contemporary landscape as a place of deep tension: we change the landscape, and it changes us. Even if we yearn for an untouched paradise, humans construct futuristic utopias. Utopia and paradise come and go (change is the only constant). This tension is fundamental to the issues we face as humans on this planet.

These artists transform the gaze into an experience of testimony: observing swirls of pollution recorded on delicate rice paper (Vivek Vilasini); washing the entire hull of a ship by hand, to acknowledge the loss of the Aral Sea (Patty Chang); or to closely examine every detail of a dense landscape at night (Sharon Lockhart). The exhibition begins with the idea of ​​paradise (Thomas Struth), facing an indomitable sea (Clifford Ross). It is centered on technological aspiration and the incomprehensible imprint of our existence on our planet. Taus Makhacheva asks: “When is land an object to be possessed or a territory to be marked? Without humans to damage the landscape, abandoned luxury homes would have incredible views (Gil Heitor Cortesão). What if we were to surround the sun with solar panels and block the light? The exhibition ends with Haroon Mirza visualizing this question in a living garden, powered by light from these solar panels.

Maya Allison, Executive Director of NYUAD Art Gallery

the only constant is open until June 4, Tuesday to Sunday, from 12 p.m. to 8 p.m.

For more details, visit nyuad-artgallery.org.

Created in 2014, The NYU Abu Dhabi Art Gallery (NYUAD) is the first of its kind in the Gulf and one of the only university galleries in the region to offer a program of scholarly and experimental museum exhibitions.

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