Newton Harrison and I had been collaborators and friends for 12 years, but for the past two years we met every Sunday to engage in rigorous conversation with one another. These conversations regarded our practices both as independent people and as collaborators on how to generate art practices grounded on a wounded planet. The conversations centered around the life web and being careful listeners to it. Newton prioritized the healing of the earth above the ethos of art for art’s sake and his commitment to the life web was a decadeslong joint effort between Newton and his late wife, Helen Mayer Harrison.
Together, as “The Harrison Studio,” they accomplished a multitude of works that have inspired many of us to follow the path they trailblazed. Newton and Helen encouraged the many around them to build research-based art practices from ennobling problems. These projects would advocate for the commons of the...