I Love You, Urgently

About

I Love You, Urgently embraces the problems of language in relation to the environmental emergency. Amidst of the plethora of scientific evidence proving the impending catastrophic impact we have imparted and continue to do so on our environment and the potential irreversibility of this impact, from melting glaciers, rising sea waters, planet overheating, deforestation, desertification… there is an overarching paralysis in processing information and taking action. We are comfortable adopting a posture of powerlessness. 
At a time when the oceans are rising in tandem with hatred, the title is a reminder that if ‘love’ still has the power to move us to action, then the urgency of its expression is vital. 
 
 The challenge of environmental and social change is not only to find solutions through tactics such as biomimicry and adaptability, but also requires efforts towards comprehension. The problem exists at the scale of the planet and is bound with global systems, but it is experienced locally and demands specific responses. Commissions by artists and designers mediate and relate challenges in modes that demand imagination, creating the conditions for receptiveness and active responses.

Curator’s word

As Saudi Arabia imagines and master plans an ambitious new future, questions of environmental and cultural sustainability can be posed. The Kingdom’s history since unification is inextricably bound to oil, a resource that has also become entwined with its identity. In a period of hyper-consumption, lessons can be taken from an architectural history that predates the rapid urban development of the last century. Read the full curatorial statement: [HERE]