The Burden of Every Drop

Articles 
Biennale nationale de sculpture contemporaine de Trois-Rivières, une 8e édition qui décoiffe, Éric Clément, La Presse +,  16 août 2018

Nathlie Miebach’s work explores the intersection of art and science by translating scientific data related to meteorology, ecology, oceanography and Climate Change into woven sculptures. Her main method of data translation is that of basket weaving, which functions as a simple, tactile grid through which to interpret data into 3D space. By utilizing artistic processes, she’s questioning and expanding the traditional boundaries through which science data has been visually translated, while at the same time provoking expectations of what kind of visual vocabulary is considered to be in the domain of ‘science’ or ‘art’.

Her work focus on hurricanes and storms because they bring together compelling stories of science and human experience. Every disaster has at least 2 narratives. The first narrative is scientific, made up of temperature, wind and pressure gradients that generate energies to build and propel these storms forward. The second narrative is made up human experiences, both during and long after the storms have left, which provide important emotional and nuanced perspectives through which we interpret these storms and try to draw lessons from.

The artist strongly believe we need both types of narratives to understand the dissonance and co-existence between the physics of weather with the theater of human responses as we come to terms with Climate Change and its effect on weather systems.

Biography

Nathalie Miebach became a sculptor to address questions she had about science through a tactile medium. She is the recipient of numerous awards and residencies, including a Pollock-Krasner Foundation Award, and a TED Global Fellowship. Her work has been shown in North America and abroa