Changing the Climate

I started Call and Response in March 2020 when the world shut down. Over 500 artists across six continents have participated in 20+ rounds. Random pairings. No fees. No gatekeepers deciding who gets to collaborate.

Climate change doesn't wait for us to feel ready. Neither does this project.

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Twenty-one artist pairs responded to "Changing the Climate" over two weeks of rapid creative exchange. One artist creates work and sends a digital image to their partner, who responds in any medium. Back and forth—each artist getting 24 hours per turn, though most worked faster. The result: 20+ artworks per pair created through this visual conversation between two artists who had never met.

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The collaborations span painting, photography, digital manipulation, collage, poetry, mixed media. Some pairs addressed literal climate collapse—melting ice, burning landscapes, species loss. Others explored the psychological climate we're living in—anxiety, grief, exhaustion, the relentless pace of catastrophe. Both approaches matter. Climate change is environmental disaster and emotional crisis, and artists are processing both simultaneously.

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What's political about this project isn't just the theme. It's the structure. Call and Response proves that artists can organize ourselves, support each other, and create meaningful work without institutional permission or funding. Every collaboration demonstrates that quality artistic dialogue doesn't require gatekeepers or exhibition fees. Every random pairing challenges the art world's obsession with networking and status.

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This exhibition documents what happened when artists had two weeks to respond to climate urgency through creative exchange. Some work is beautiful. Some is devastating. All of it refuses to look away.

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*These exchanges took place over two weeks. One artist creates work and sends a digital image to their partner, who responds in any medium. Back and forth—each artist getting 24 hours per turn, though most worked faster. The result: 20+ artworks created through rapid creative dialogue between two artists who had never met. The resulting documentation shares the artwork in the order it was created and tells a story of their thought process.