Cape Farewell brings artists, scientists and educators together to collectively address and raise awareness about climate change and global warming. Created by David Buckland, Cape Farewell has led three expeditions into the wild, beautiful and icy High Arctic, a place for artistic inspiration and scientific enquiry.
With him he has taken scientists from the National Oceanography Centre, Southampton (formerly the Southampton Oceanography Centre), secondary school teachers of GCSE Science and Geography, and high profile British artists including Ian McEwan, Antony Gormley, Rachel Whiteread, Gary Hume, Heather Ackroyd and Dan Harvey.
On board the 100-year old Dutch schooner, The Noorderlicht, Cape Farewell has sailed right to the heart of the debate. From this vantage point the artists and scientists aim to illustrate the workings of this crucial part of the planet, drawing attention to the role ocean currents play and the effect rising CO2 levels and changing weather patterns will have on us all and our climate. More »
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Cape Farewell is a series of expeditions into the Arctic, through a route previously icebound but now passable. The journeys explore the very seas that hold the key to understanding the health of the worlds' ocean currents.
By physically sailing to the heart of the debate and drawing together scientists, teachers, and renowned artists, Cape Farewell aims to illustrate the workings of this crucial part of the planet and engage the public and schools in the debate about climate change - drawing people's attention to the role ocean currents play and the effect changing weather patterns and rising seas could have on us and our climate. More on the expeditions »
There appears to be enough evidence over the last century to indicate that global warming is taking place, though even this is still disputed by some. What is in greater dispute are its causes. There is some evidence that people's economic and other activities are causing the change because of various forms of pollution and land use change. The increased amounts of C02 in the atmosphere as a result of burning fossil fuels is blamed by many as one of the main causes. There are, however alternative explanations that show how longer term climatic changes can occur for a variety of reasons.
The scientific proof is there and we are not listening or the scientists are not finding ways to engage the public. Cape Farewell was conceived by the artist David Buckland and during the past four years he and his team have developed a program of arctic activity. Through expeditions with artists, oceanographers and teachers into the High Arctic, the team have already developed work that is being piloted within the education syllabus at GCSE level. By combining the arts, film, radio, journalism and the adventure of the high arctic expedition, the Cape Farewell team are working with the international media to engage the wider audience. More on the Science of Climate Change »
“We intend to communicate through artworks our understanding of the changing climate on a human scale, so that our individual lives can have meaning in what is a global problem.” David Buckland.
Cape Farewell was conceived by artist David Buckland, and during the past four years he and his team have developed a program of arctic activity. The Arts are a core part of the Cape Farewell project: one salient image, sculpture or event can speak louder than volumes of scientific data and engage the public's imagination in an immediate way. To this end Cape Farewell has invited artists onboard to be inspired by the ice, seas and subject matter. The High Arctic, for a myriad of reasons, provides such a place for real artistic investigation. The artists are committed to working together towards a common intellectual aim using the arctic as a source of 'artistic' food. To understand how scientific enquiry has opened up new ways of viewing our planet and how, by applying creative processes, the artists can find new and innovative ways to represent this extraordinary place and the implications of climate change. More on Cape Farewell Art and the artists who have worked with Cape Farewell »
Ian McEwan - Novelist Antony Gormley - Sculptor David Buckland - Photographer and video artist Rachel Whiteread - Sculptor Gary Hume - Painter Siobhan Davies - Choreographer Heather Ackroyd and Dan Harvey - Sculptors Kathy Barber - Artist & designer Peter Clegg - Architect Gautier Deblonde - Photographer Max Eastley - Sound Artist Nick Edwards - Film artist and watercolourist Gretel Ehrlich - Novelist and poet Alex Hartley - Sculptor David Hinton - Film Director Michéle Noach - Artoonist Suba Subramaniam - Bharata Natyam dancer
Cape Farewell presents a series of exhibitions and events in 2006, under the title The Ship: The Art of Climate Change. This series has been made possible with support from the Arts Council England, Cape Farewell's major arts funder. More on Cape Farewell exhibitions »
The Cape Farewell project has already demonstrated its reach and appeal, and the deepening interest in the voyages reflects increasing interest in climate change in the UK and worldwide. Since the first voyage in May 2003 Cape Farewell has become a well known public project with the recent exhibition at the Natural History Museum and the recent BBC2/BBC4 documentary. We are currently working towards a landmark Cape Farewell Education project around climate change, centred on the Cape Farewell voyages scheduled for September 2007, to coincide with International Polar Year.
The voyages have a compelling narrative element and a strong cast of celebrated artists (for example Gary Hume, Antony Gormley, Ian McEwan, Rachel Whiteread), scientists from the National Oceanography Centre, teachers, media and sailing crew. The arts/science ethos of the voyages highlights a very contemporary way into complex scientific issues through art and performance.
In formal education in the UK there is considerable frustration on the part of concerned teachers and students that the space for learning and talking about climate change is limited within the current curriculum. Finding out about climate change lends itself to powerful cross curricular approaches and such opportunities need a strong narrative context to make sense to students.More on Cape Farewell Education
By combining the arts, film, radio, journalism and the adventure of the high Arctic expedition, the Cape Farewell team are working with international media to engage a wide audience. More on Cape Farewell media »