Helen Mayer Harrison and Newton Harrison (The Harrisons, Harrison Studio) became legends in their own time as pioneers of ecological art and environmental art. Ecological art, or eco-art, is a distinctive area of contemporary art practice, a subcategory of environmental art that focuses on the biological interdependencies in ecosystems [1]. To understand ecosystems, to work with them as an artistic medium, and to create successful ecological and environmental interventions, the Harrisons had to master environmental science. They also had to conduct original research at the intersections of art and science, generating outcomes that contributed to both fields. They thus played leading roles in defining art as an authentic research field and in the emerging interdisciplinary field of art-science. To further their research, the Harrisons, together with their son Joshua Harrison, founded the Center for the Study of the Force Majeure at the University of California, Santa Cruz (2013)....

You do not currently have access to this content.