Art Meets Science—Artist Talk with Rebecca Rutstein
The Earth Commons and Georgetown University Art Galleries present a talk with multidisciplinary artist Rebecca Rutstein, who works at the intersection of art, science and technology. For over twenty years she has created paintings, sculpture, interactive installation and public art inspired by the natural world. Rutstein is passionate about creating visual and immersive experiences that illuminate hidden environments, to foster connection in the face of our climate crisis. Her talk will explore the evolution of her work, her partnerships with scientists (including microbiologists, ecologists, geologists and molecular biologists) and the value and synergy of interdisciplinary exchange. Her residencies and collaborations with scientists include seven expeditions at sea and two deep sea dives in the Alvin submersible. Her work with oceanographers, ecologists, microbiologists, molecular scientists and geologists give her a unique perspective and a broad view of the interconnectedness of systems in the natural world and the fractal geometry of nature.
The talk will be followed by a reception with food and drink hosted by the Earth Commons. No RSVP or registration required.
Rutstein’s collaborations have been funded by the National Science Foundation, National Academy of Sciences/Keck Futures Initiative, Delta Airlines Foundation, Ocean Exploration Trust, Schmidt Ocean Institute and the Philadelphia Foundation along with several universities. She is the recipient of the Pew Fellowship in the Arts, an Independence Foundation Fellowship, a Pennsylvania Council on the Arts grant, an Alabama Council on the Arts grant, is an MIT Ocean Discovery Fellow, and was recently named the Delta Visiting Chair for Global Understanding for her groundbreaking work at the University of Georgia. Rutstein has been featured on NPR, ABC, CBS, and in the Wall Street Journal, Huffington Post, Vice & Vogue UK magazines. With over 30 solo exhibitions, Rutstein has exhibited widely in museums and institutions, and has spoken at universities across the country about her practice and interdisciplinary collaboration. Her work can be found in over 40 public collections including the Philadelphia Museum of Art, Georgia Museum of Art, Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts Museum, U.S. Department of State, Yale University, University of Washington, University of Alabama, University of New Mexico, Temple University, Albert Einstein College of Medicine, Johns Hopkins Hospital, Microsoft and AT&T. Rutstein holds a BFA (magna cum laude) from Cornell University and an MFA from University of Pennsylvania. She is represented by the Bridgette Mayer Gallery (Philadelphia), Space Gallery (Denver) and Sherry Leedy Contemporary (Kansas City).
“Given that today’s challenges and opportunities are at once technical and human, addressing them calls for the full range of human knowledge and creativity. Future professionals and citizens need to see when specialized approaches are valuable and when they are limiting, find synergies at the intersections between diverse fields, create and communicate novel solutions, and empathize with the experiences of others.”
– National Academies of Practice, 2018
“You only protect what you love.”
– Jacque Cousteau
