Artists April Gornik and Diane Tuft in Conversation for Climate Change & Connection to Art

Renowned painter April Gornik and acclaimed mixed-media artist Diane Tuft will join one another for an artist talk about climate change, the environment, and how this topic connects to their art. The talk will take place at Guild Hall in East Hampton on Monday, August 26th at 5:00 p.m. 

April Gornik is co-founder of The Church in Sag Harbor, a creativity center and artist residency where the public is invited to experience spectacular events, and the work of artists in multiple mediums is highlighted year-round. Their artist talk this Monday will also relate to Diane Tuft’s recently released book Entropy, which delves into the transformation of water due to climate change, especially the effect on communities that live in coastal places.

April and Diane each spoke more about their art and the connection they draw to the environment, as well as what those in attendance can expect from their upcoming discussion at Guild Hall.

Can you tell us about your background and how you got started with painting?

April Gornik: I was a postwar suburban kid who loved to make things, and when push came to shove in terms of applying to colleges, I opted for an art college instead of pursuing philosophical interests. Then I tried to be a conceptual artist. Then, much to my surprise and the surprise of others, I became a landscape painter.

What is your favorite subject matter for your art, and has it changed as the world around us changes?

April Gornik: I would say that mortality and temporality are my favorite subject matters. The objective of trying to stop the world at a single loaded moment is as much about mortality as beauty or transitoriness. But I prefer to stay with beauty (and Eros) as an anchor in a changing world. My subject matter has evolved a lot but has not changed a lot.

Can you discuss how climate change and the environment plays a role in your work and when this first became an important subject for you to explore?

April Gornik: It has always been a strong subtext in my work, but if it’s now seen as a very deliberate argument for saving what is most precious about life, then I’m all for that interpretation.

What message do you hope people take away from your work?

April Gornik: I very emphatically do not want to direct people toward a particular “message” or meaning in my work. I prefer that it invites multiple interpretations. So, I can’t honestly say that I hope people would stop at one response. That said, the world is still beautiful and hopefully it’ll be so without us and beyond us if we destroy it. Of course we’re looking at it subjectively anyway. I’m really just painting my own perception, after all.

What are you most looking forward to for your upcoming artist talk with Diane Tuft? What can those in attendance expect?

April Gornik: I greatly admire Diane’s focus and the beauty of her work, and look forward to agreeing with her on the importance of her message, and the critical importance of addressing climate change.

Can you discuss your involvement in co-founding The Church and why this has been an important mission for you?

April Gornik: My husband Eric Fischl and I have been involved in The Church since the beginning, but since I was the chair of the campaign to buy and rebuild the Sag Harbor Cinema I spent the first year of The Church’s existence focused on that project. The Church has been such a joy, because it reflects my vision of what an institution that celebrates creativity could be, that is, countenancing creativity in all forms, from painting and dance and writing to science and technology and how two families have kept our 5 & 10 in Sag Harbor going for over 100 years. We’ve had many fantastic events!

What do you love most about the East End, and do you ever find inspiration on the East End for your work?

April Gornik: I love this PLACE. I realized a couple of decades ago that I was trying to “locate” myself in landscape (meaning, to understand myself and also feel a certain physical connection to place in my work). I simultaneously realized that I like being near the edge of things (water and land, e.g.). And there are a lot of edges out here on the East “End”.

Is there anything else you’d like to share about yourself or the upcoming artist talk?

April Gornik: I don’t want to spoil whatever spontaneously happens! I feel sure it’ll be engaging and rich.

Can you tell us about your background and how you got started working as an artist?

Diane Tuft: I focused on math and science in college and continued working in that field in my early career, but making art has always been my biggest passion. I am particularly inspired by nature and have expressed that connection through art even as a young child creating small installations with natural materials and painting sunsets. When I moved to New York City as a young adult, I took my first black and white photography class at the New School. While balancing my life as a mother of three, I continued to explore various art forms. I studied at ICP during the year, and during the summers since 1974, I studied painting, sculpture, and printmaking on the East End of Long Island. I then pursued a Master of Fine Arts at Pratt Institute.

How does climate change and the environment play a role in your work? Can you talk about when this first became an important subject for you?

Diane Tuft: My scientific background inspired an interest in different artistic techniques, initially focusing on painting with unconventional materials like wax, pigment, and resin. Concerns about the toxicity of this work then led me to photography, where I experimented with high-speed infrared film to capture the visual effects of infrared radiation on landscapes. I printed these images in platinum, an alternative printing process.

Inspired by Robert Smithson’s dedication to creating art in the landscape, I was compelled to photograph his most famous work, the Spiral Jetty, located in the Great Salt Lake in Utah. In 2005 I traveled there with the Dia Foundation and my black and white infrared film. Knowing the challenges of transporting infrared film through airports (it cannot be x-rayed), I decided to also bring a color digital camera.

During the helicopter ride to the Spiral Jetty, I couldn’t resist capturing the colors of the lake with my digital camera. When I returned to New York and downloaded the images, I noticed that the colors were even more vibrant than I had viewed. Intrigued, I reached out to Dr. Bonnie Baxter, a Professor of Biology and Director of the Great Salt Lake Institute (who has contributed one of the two essays to Entropy). She explained that the lake’s unique features caused it to absorb more ultraviolet light. The digital color camera allowed me to capture the visual effects of the other end of our light spectrum.

This revelation led me to explore areas of the world where infrared and ultraviolet radiation were more prevalent. Both the Arctic and Antarctica experience ozone depletion, which allows for more of the sun’s rays including both infrared and ultraviolet to penetrate our atmosphere.

By documenting these visual effects, I aim to raise awareness of the severe consequences of climate change and global warming.

Can you tell us about your new book Entropy? What was the inspiration behind it?

Diane Tuft: My third monograph, The Arctic Melt: Images of a Disappearing Landscape (2017), focused on capturing the melting glaciers and ice sheets of the Arctic, highlighting their role in rising sea levels. Following this, in 2018 and 2019, I set out to document regions around the world directly impacted by these rising tides. The first half of my latest book, Entropy – titled Rising Tide: Sinking Earth – explores these vulnerable areas, including the Florida Keys, Chesapeake Bay, the Marshall Islands, Kiribati, and Bangladesh. In 2022, I revisited the Great Salt Lake, a location I had first documented in 2005 for my series Salt Lake Reconsidered. The lake has since experienced severe water depletion, now reduced to just two thirds of its former volume. The second half of Entropy features aerial views of this dramatically altered landscape.

What message do you hope people take away from your work?

Diane Tuft: While much of my work is abstract, I aim for these images to spark curiosity and encourage viewers to question what they’re seeing and why it’s significant. I hope this prompts a conversation about the impact of climate change and global warming on our environment

What are you most looking forward to for your upcoming artist talk with April Gornik, and what can those in attendance expect?

Diane Tuft: I have long admired April Gornik’s steadfast devotion to the landscape and the sense of otherworldly spirituality in her paintings. I hope my work similarly conveys the beauty of our disappearing natural world. At our upcoming artist talk, I am looking forward to sharing this mutual passion for nature and the urgency to protect it. I believe we both aim to inspire a greater appreciation for the landscape and highlight the importance of preservation.

What do you love most about the East End, and do you ever find inspiration on the East End for your work?

Diane Tuft: I’ve spent much of my life on the East End, and the unique light and air of this area, which has drawn artists since 1884, continues to inspire me. Being in such a special environment fuels my creativity and deepens my commitment to exploring and protecting the landscape.

For more information about Diane and April’s artist talk event and to purchase tickets, click here.