We are coming to a close with our 2020–21 theme of Creative Ensemble for RAS Art Focus, where we have been exploring how art can impact society with artists who are creative agents for affecting change. Through this specially curated series, we seek to broaden and expand our notion of what constitutes "art."

In this talk, artist Celyn Bricker will introduce a number of his previous projects which involved collaborating with communities in the UK, Italy and China, as well as his more recent artwork that is focused on technology and the environment. His artistic practice explores using art as a tool not just to communicate environmental problems, but also as a way to potentially solve certain environmental issues. His current focus is on the issue of bird collisions with glass, which in the US is estimated to kill up to a billion birds per year. He will discuss the particular issues facing migratory birds in China, as well as his proposal, as an artist, that offers a potential solution to this overlooked issue.

About the speaker:

Celyn Bricker is a visual artist from the UK. In his work he explores technology, community and our relationship to nature. He explores these themes across a range of media, ranging from using Artifical Intelligence technology, to painting and drawing, to design and installation. Celyn's artwork has been collected by the Royal Scottish Academy in the UK, and his collaborative piece AIMADE was recently accepted into the National Collection of Mexico. In China he has exhibited widely, including having his work shown at the 2016 Shanghai Biennale 'infra-curatorial' project and more recently at UCCA in Beijing. He is the co-founder of CELU Studio, an interdisciplinary art and design studio focused on environmental issues. He is currently an Artist in Residence at the Swatch Art Peace Hotel.

Website: celynbricker.com​

Instagram: @celynbricker​

Convener: Julie Chun, Art Historian and Art Critic