Dear Earth: Art and Hope in a Time of Crisis

Artists from Agnes Denes to Hito Steyerl address ecology and humanity’s new imperative to reenchant the world. Lavishly illustrated, with texts by Rebecca Solnit and Greta Thunberg which explore the role that art and artists can play in climate activism.

Dear Earth: Art and Hope in a Time of Crisis is printed on 100% recycled paper that’s certified by the Forestry Stewardship Council (FSC), with EU Ecolabel and Blue Angel accreditation. The images are printed using vegetable inks, and the production has been carbon offset. The books have travelled without shrink-wrapping to avoid single use plastic. The essays and ‘tapestry’ sections are printed in a single colour to reduce the number of times the sheets pass through the press, saving energy in the production. After looking at many books that featured greens and browns, we chose a vibrant blue as a symbol of hope and healing.

The book features texts on each artist, and essays by Rachel Thomas, Rebecca Solnit, Maja and Reuben Fowkes, Greta Thunberg and Imani Jacqueline Brown. It also includes a conversion between artist Jenny Kendler and birder J. Drew Lanham, a manifesto by Agnes Denes, poetry by Deena Metzger and an extract from an interview on activism by Andrea Bowers. Dear Earth is designed by Melanie Mues, and the cover features a detail of the drawing Reconciliation (2018) by Otobong Nkanaga.

‘I’m telling you there is hope. I have seen it, but it does not come from the governments or corporations. It comes from the people.’ Greta Thunberg

Format: Paperback
Pages: 176
Imprint: Hayward Gallery
Publication date: 19/07/2023