Float by Buster Simpson

Float by Buster Simpson

Helen High Water by Pat Oleszko

Helen High Water by Pat Oleszko

Free art and educational event expresses concern for Captiva and Southwest Florida

CAPTIVA ISLAND, Fla. (May 18, 2016) – Rauschenberg Residency members will host a series of art events as well as the March of the Climate Change Provocateurs down Captiva beach on Saturday, May 21 to express the serious concerns of artists and scientists for Captiva and all of Southwest Florida, including climate change and the rising waters of the Gulf of Mexico – a projected three-foot increase in ocean levels by 2050 will cause frequent flooding and a disruption of or damage to infrastructure such as roads, sewers, drainage and septic systems.

Using humor and thoughtful direct engagement with beach goers, the multiple art events will take place from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. on Captiva Island public beach between The Mucky Duck on Andy Rosse Lane and the Alison Hagerup Beach parking lot at the end of Captiva Drive. The march down the beach will follow from 1 to 1:30 p.m.

The March of the Climate Change Provocateurs was created by New York City performance artist Pat Oleszko. Many artists in blue tights, black sport coats and bizarre giant hats will be choreographed in and out of the water.

The free event is presented by the artists and scientists participating in the five-week program, Rising Waters II, at the Rauschenberg Residency on Captiva Island, a program of the Robert Rauschenberg Foundation. Residency artists include Kristie Anders, Red Anders, Rachel Armstrong, Amy Balkin, Christopher Cozier, Matthew Gamel, Lisa Hirmer, Mick Lorusso, Pat Oleszko, Buster Simpson, smudge studio, Glenn Weiss and Marina Zurkow.

Robert Rauschenberg’s twenty-acre estate on Captiva Island, which was his home and studio for 40 years, was transformed into a creative center that welcomes artists from around the world to live, work and create. The Robert Rauschenberg Foundation launched the Rauschenberg Residency in 2012 with a series of five pilot residencies that served to inform and shape the program. There are now seven one-month-long residencies annually that serve more than 70 artists and other creative individuals of exceptional talent and promise from a diverse mix of disciplines, backgrounds, ages and career levels.

The Rauschenberg Residency is inspired by Rauschenberg’s early years at Black Mountain College where an artistic community brought out elements central to his art, collaboration and exploration, learning from and working with others to break new ground. The residency advances new work, extends practices into new mediums, and serves as a research and development lab for performance-based projects; it fosters the ideal that artistic practice advances mutual understanding, and it engenders a focus on the conservation of a sensitive and pristine environment.

For more information, visit www.rauschenbergfoundation.org.