Combining Art and Environmental Advocacy
Finding ways to make a difference through visual art
If you are an artist, you know how central creativity is in your life. For me, it’s like sleep or food, something I can’t live without.
Artwork is not just an end unto itself though, it can also be a powerful emotional or educational tool. Other than art, what is really important to you? What do you want to use your skills to address? It’s fine if your work doesn’t carry a message, but if you do have specific things to say, how do you go about that?
I’ll share some different approaches to conveying meaning in your artwork. This focus is on visual art and environmental issues, but the concepts can translate into different fields. I encourage artists in all media to spend time creating work that expresses your values.
In our busy lives, it’s hard to find time for creativity and to know where to focus our limited resources. It’s even harder to embed a message that you care deeply about into your work, and it’s crazy hard to do it while collaborating and compromising with others.
Through trial and error, I’ve tried to hit emotional or educational targets with my artwork. I’ve come to see that there are goals to keep in mind from the beginning. I’m calling these Inspire, Participate, Inform, and Protest. You can combine them, but having your main objective in mind is helpful.
I’ve used my own artwork as examples, but at the bottom are links to other artists and groups that I recommend you visit.
Inspire
I think of inspiration in artwork as something lovely that makes you feel good, or maybe a little sad. It shows the importance of the subject, and helps people identify with an action or set of values. Someone looking at the pieces above will (hopefully) connect over their love for our world and desire to protect nature.
To inspire, the work needs to go beyond just an image, and carry meaning. If it’s not clear with the visuals, don’t be afraid to include text within the art, or in the description that stays with the work. The full title of the first piece is actually ‘There is no greater treasure than all of the sunrises and sunsets glowing golden over this rich, wild land.’
For the third image, I carved the Monarch butterflies as stamps and have used them to make quite a few pieces. These gorgeous butterflies migrate over generations, and are likely about to be listed as threatened under the Endangered Species Act. I’ve made artwork and written about Monarchs in hopes of inspiring people to learn and support their protection.
Participate
A straightforward way to use your art to make a difference is to work with an organization that already has environmental programs in place. Volunteer first to understand the work and people involved. Let them know that you’d like to use your artistic skills to participate, also. Subscribe to newsletters, watch for calls for art, create and donate artwork for their fundraisers.
It may be a goal to work for a national or worldwide organization, but I recommend starting local. You can make a big difference in your community, and for your career. It’s ok to donate your skills or art if you want, but don’t be shy to mention that payment to artists is important. That’s the only way to keep the whole process sustainable.
The first two images above are of the Yampa Is Wild mural that was commissioned by Friends of the Yampa. They wanted to show the different communities, activities, and ecosystems connected by this 250 mile long river. I designed the mural to be painted as a community project. Once painted with the help of 120 people, we installed it on the building.
The other two images are examples of artwork created for ReTree, a tree planting program run by Yampa Valley Sustainability Council (my part-time employer).
Inform
Are you someone who likes to do research and write? Go for it! Learn about a topic, write it up, and make art to go with it. Or if you aren’t a writer, collaborate with one. Think ahead to how you will share and distribute the finished piece. You could submit to a newspaper, magazine, or book publisher. For any sort of publisher, be sure to familiarize yourself with their publications and guidelines. Also, see if you can submit art samples to an art director or editor. This person would match you up as an illustrator with an article being written by another author.
The Western Confluence images above are from a recent magazine article. I’d worked with the editor before on an article that I wrote and illustrated. For this story by a different author, she thought of my artwork and asked if I had anything that would fit.
You can also go indie and start a Substack or share your work through a newsletter or blog. You can try social media if you have short form content and are willing to risk the algorithm. (I’m definitely a fan of Substack so far.)
I love books and paper more than just sharing online, so I’ve tried some projects like in the images above. I collected artwork from 18 artists and created 20 different Rocky Mountain Wildlife cards. Wildlife biologists and other experts provided the text. Each animal had artwork on one side and a few facts, issues they face, and ways for the reader to get involved on the reverse.
I also did interviews and wrote articles about different species and the people who study them. I turned the cool stories and photos into zines (short run, self published books). I used my original linocut prints for the covers like in the photos of the chipmunk zine above. I wound up with seven different zines about wildlife and they were WAY more popular than I ever thought they would be!
**I recommend before publishing or submitting anything informative, fact check and have an editor or focused reader give you feedback.**
Protest
Protesting in public isn’t my strength. I protest plenty in my head though, haha! Putting my artwork into the world, I prefer to lean into positive and educational vibes. But there is great value in getting angry and protesting, especially when the target is specific and happening now. You can show up in person to actions, or you can make art illuminating something important to share online.
Many of the artists and collectives linked below are very good at protest art, and it’s not just about environmental issues for them. I’ve included people with different styles and voices, too. Please share other favorites in the comments!
Just Seeds
Roger Peet
Ernesto Yerena Montejano
Amplifier
Pen and Ink Brigade
Jessica Thornton
Hollow Tree Honey Foundation
Oliver Jeffers
Encourage
Encourage isn’t actually one of the targets I’d originally thought of, but it sort of works too. It sounds like a branch of inspire! This encouragement is for YOU- anyone who has read this far. There are zillions of different ways to use your creative skills to help protect the environment. It is often hard to know exactly what to do, but look at it as a process, a cumulative body of work that you will explore into the future. Everything you make carries part of the larger message.
You may feel vulnerable when you speak out about important issues. That makes it hard to start, but it does get easier. It helps when you find other people working in these areas too. As you find your voice, find your people, and make an impact, it is the most rewarding feeling. So, go make some art!