Seeing boundlessly, before it's too late | Valerie Mirra | TEDxRISD

Key Concepts

Attention, interconnection between art and nature, displacement, environmental catastrophe, plain air painting, resilience, ecological practices, landscape as teacher, boundaries, empathy, responsibility.

Displacement and the Search for Home

The speaker opens by discussing the importance of attention and how modern life often distracts us from truly observing our surroundings. She highlights her personal experiences with displacement, starting with the political upheaval in Belarus in 2020, which forced her family to flee, and compounded by the Santa Cruz lightning fires that destroyed her aunt's home. These events led her to reflect on her relationship with place and environment.

• Example: The speaker's family fleeing Belarus and later being further displaced by the war in Ukraine.
• Example: The Santa Cruz lightning fires destroying her aunt's home in the Big Basin redwoods.
• Key Point: These experiences of loss and displacement prompted a deeper reflection on the connection between humans and the environment.

Plain Air Painting as a Tool for Connection

The speaker describes her practice of plain air painting as a way to connect with landscapes, even those that are hostile or desolate. She emphasizes that this practice requires focused attention, allowing her to observe details and learn about the environment.

• Definition: Plain air painting is painting outdoors, directly observing the subject.
• Example: Painting on the North Sea shoreline, learning about the insects, frogs, and birds that inhabit the area.
• Example: Painting in Montana during fire season, learning about fireweed and its role in revegetating disturbed soil.
• Example: Painting in Vermont during a blizzard, learning how deer bed down in thickets to stay warm.
• Key Point: Plain air painting fosters a deeper understanding and appreciation for the land, even in challenging conditions.

The Illusion of Separation and the Importance of Ecological Practices

The speaker argues that we are often surrounded by "reductions of nature," such as flattened backdrops or blueprints for alteration, which disconnect us from the environment. She emphasizes the importance of recognizing that ecological and humanitarian crises are intertwined and that everything begins and ends with the land.

• Key Point: Conservation sometimes necessitates certain degrees of destruction, referencing indigenous ecological practices like controlled burning and hunting.
• Argument: People already know how to mitigate environmental problems, but they are not being listened to.
• Key Point: The speaker argues that our severed connection to landscapes makes it difficult to convey the gravity of ecological and humanitarian crises.

Learning from the Land: Denali National Park

The speaker shares an experience backpacking in Denali National Park, where she learned to read the land and rely on the knowledge of animals.

• Example: Following a caribou trail to navigate a difficult landscape.
• Key Point: She realized the importance of regarding everything around her as an equal and learning from the ecosystems she encountered.
• Key Point: The speaker emphasizes that ecosystems are complex worlds, simultaneously destructive and restorative, fragile and resilient.

Boundaries and the Perseverance of Life

The speaker discusses the devastating consequences of boundaries, such as highways, fences, and national borders, using the example of a fence cutting through the Bella Verska forest in Belarus.

• Example: A 116-meter long fence cutting apart the Bella Verska forest to deter migrants.
• Key Point: Despite these divisions, life perseveres and adapts.
• Example: Painting in abandoned hospitals and naval bases, witnessing how people and animals adapt to these spaces.

Conclusion: Responsibility and Empathy

The speaker concludes by urging the audience to look closely at the world with empathy and to build a record of what must be seen. She emphasizes our responsibility for our home and someone else's home, and the importance of weaving a complex story from many strands.

• Quote: "We may never see the world again as it is now. It is our duty to look at it closely."
• Call to Action: To look with empathy, build a record of what must be seen, and weave a complex story.
• Key Point: We have a responsibility for our home and someone else's home.