Clemson faculty members to participate in prestigious Sonoma Valley exhibition

Published: September 16, 2009

The art installation by Clemson University landscape architecture faculty. image by: Clemson University

CLEMSON — Two members of the Clemson University Landscape Architecture faculty have transformed some of their recent work in Egypt into an art installation at a prestigious San Francisco Bay area show.

Hala Nassar and Robert Hewitt, along with their students, have tackled some pressing issues in Egypt over the last several years. Those projects, grappling with climate and other changes in some of the world’s most-treasured ancient sites, will be incorporated into their “Climate Change Garden” exhibit at The Late Show Gardens in California’s Sonoma Valley.

The show challenges designers to address climate change and drought and it was the work Nassar led in Egypt — and her own Egyptian heritage — that earned the Clemson faculty members an invitation to California. The Late Show Gardens opens Thursday at Cornerstone Gardens in Sonoma.

The installation by Nassar and Hewitt is a true collaborative piece that included internationally acclaimed artist Aribert von Ostrowski of Berlin, Germany, who gave them permission to incorporate some of his artwork. Clemson’s Sonoco Institute of Packaging Design and Graphics also contributed to the project. For the most part, however, Nassar and Hewitt relied on work they have done in recent years while collaborating with Ain Shams University of Cairo.

The two schools have worked to find solutions to threats and intrusions at some of Egypt’s great historic sites, including the Great Pyramid of Giza. Nassar and Hewitt rolled those projects into their installation, “Climate Change Garden,” in which they explore the impact of global warming on those ancient places.

Large images printed on recycled polyester fabrics take a look at the potential impact of rising sea levels. An image of a mantis is added from the work of von Ostrowski, along with live plants, to probe the significance of global change.

“We kept asking ourselves ‘What if?’” Nassar said. “The Climate Change Garden expresses, through design, the impending changes we face concerning meaning and nature, resource scarcity and greater global cultural awareness.”

Organizers call The Late Show Gardens a chance for “world class minds to come together in one place and discuss ideas that may help improve our impact on the world – (to) celebrate design while addressing climate change, drought, sustainable practices and renewable resources.”

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