Inheritance, 2019
Confluence Ecologies exhibition, Southern Illinois University
Beneath the rolling hills of Southern Illinois lies a fossilized section of a vast forest swamp that thrived 300 million years ago. Stretching for 100 miles along both sides of the ancient river as wide as the Mississippi, this fossil forest cuts across the heart of the Illinois Basin coal seam, forged from peat soils where ferns and giant trees (Arborescent Lycopods) once anchored their roots. It took over 300 million years to sequester the carbon that lies under Southern Illinois in the form of coal. It has taken a mere 200 years, and the labor of thousands of coal miners, to extract that carbon destined to fuel the lifestyle that defines our inheritance.
Miners are on the front lines. Many of them have seen the remnants of the fossil forest that remains hidden to those above ground. Coal miners are also the first to personally experience the costs of the industry. We are grateful to those we have met for generously sharing their knowledge, experience and voice: Paula Borgra, Molly Brayfield, Tim Burris, Kate Heist, Melissa Shelton, Chuck Wilson. We also thank geologists Scott Elrick and Joe Devera for their clarity and enthusiasm.
The installation was comprised of two rooms, the first a lightless room where the audience would hear a 24-minute audio work presenting the voices of local miners and geologists, and the second a sculptural installation and text work. You can listen to the full 24-minute track below.
