Program Description
About this event:
Live talk with Artist-at-Sea participant, Gideon Gerlt, traveling from Manzanillo, Mexico to Portland, Oregon aboard the Falkor.
Aboard Falkor, Gideon will create abstracted sculptural forms inspired by phytoplankton, which will be used to obtain site-specific oceanic video recordings. These elements will work together to create an environmental installation that will provide a glimpse into the fantastic microscopic world of the oceanic environment. Researchers will be mapping the ocean floor between Manzanillo, Mexico to Portland, OR. Program attendees will be able to talk to Gideon about his project via video-conference while he is aboard the ship!
Artist bio:
Early on, Gideon Gerlt's creativity was strongly influenced by the vibrant natural environment of rural Alaska. His expression can be traced down two broad, yet pivotal avenues: fantastic representations that amplify emotional and psychological content and a comparison of the ways in which humans react to nature, self, and society and subsequently evolve.
​Gideon's recent works explore the intersection between art, science, and technology. He splices geometric shapes and architectural design with structures found in nature to reflect on the complexity of connectedness between mankind, the environment, and their systems. Inspired by a fascination with biological systems and processes Gideon has created site-specific, interactive, multimedia installations that have emulated organic complexity through iterative patterns. His works have suggestively represented neurons, mirror cells, and DNA.
Gideon received his BFA from the University of Alaska Anchorage and MFA from the University of Hawaii at Manoa. He has Lectured in Art at the University of Hawaii Manoa, the Honolulu Museum Art School, and was invited to be a Teaching Assistant at Haystack Mountain School of Craft. Gideon has exhibited in Alaska, Hawaii, Italy, and Maine.
The program is free and open to the public. The discussion will promote the arts, sciences, and environmental responsibility.