Context - 3 Rivers 2nd Nature

Context for 3 Rivers 2nd Nature

A definition of Public:

"in certain more civic perspectives, the distinctiveness of the public realm (or public sphere) may have more to do with the significance of solidarity, of public spirit, of participation in a process of active citizenship and collective self-determination. But, in either case, the public realm is commonly defined, above all in opposition to the private realm of the market and civil society."

Article Brain, D.,

From Public Housing
to Private Communities:
The Discipline of Design and the Materialization of the Public/Private Distinction in the Built Environment

University of Chicago Press

Pittsburgh Contours

"We need a foundation of social art, on which every individual experiences and recognizes himself as a creative being and as a participant in shaping and defining the world. Everyone is an artist."

- Joseph. Beuys

3 Rivers 2nd Nature builds upon thirty years of artists working directly with ecosystems and/or social systems. One of the most notable artists in this area was Joseph Beuys, a German artist who was also co-founder of the German Green Party. Beuys developed a theory of social-sculpture which was based in the ideas of creative equity ("everyone is an artist") and creative capital (the social-economic value of a creative society). Despite his groundbreaking social art theories, Joseph Beuys retained his role as primary author throughout his artistic career. Later artists working in art, ecology and society contexts would actualize his theoretical approach. Some of the other artists that inform our work include: Helen and Newton Harrison (working primarily in Europe), Hans Haacke, Allan Sonfist, Meirle Laderman Ukeles, Lynn Hull, Betsy Damon (presently working in China), Platform (London) and Wochenklausur (Austria).

3R2N was initiated by artists who define their practice in relation to the public realm. Artists envisioned this project, developed partnerships and raised the funds to hire the project teams. We create the social space for creative open-ended public-dialogues with aesthetic and scientific components that are open to supplementary response and prioritization from citizens and decision makers alike. By creating a meaningful public platform for creative discourse about ecology and infrastructure, we recognize the challenge and the need to develop alternative and diverse visions.