Meter JUngle Flashcards
Where and when was Mark Dion born
born in 1961 in New Bedford, Massachusetts
What type of art projects is Mark Dion recognized for
He is recognized for conceptual art projects grounded in environmental concerns
Which influential program did Dion participate in during the 1980s
He participated in the Independent Study Program of the Whitney Museum of American Art in New York
Who was one of the teachers Dion studied with at the Whitney Museum
He studied with Hans Haacke
What aspect of art has Dion been concerned with throughout his career
the histories of museum display
Made “Neukom Vivarium”
Mark Dion
What is “Neukom Vivarium”, and where was it installed
A work where Dion installed a sixty-foot hemlock tree in a purpose-built greenhouse in Seattle’s Olympic Sculpture Park
What does “Neukom Vivarium” allow visitors to witness
It allows visitors to witness the decomposition of the tree within its ecosystem
What is “Milred’s Lane”, and where is it located
A permanent art site and artist residency located in rural northeastern Pennsylvania
Who did Dion collaborate with to create “Milred’s Lane”
J. Morgan Puett
What intersection does “Milred’s Lane” commit to
It is committed to the intersection of art and ecology.
Made “A Meter of Jungle”
Mark Dion
When did Dion work on “A Meter of Jungle”
throughout the summer of 1992
exhibition where “A Meter of Jungle” was displayed
Arte Amazonas
Where was the exhibition “Arte Amazonas” held
Rio de Janeiro’s Museu de Arte Moderna
What did Dion transplant to the gallery for his work
He transplanted a section of the Amazon rainforest floor
What process did Dion use to work on the rainforest floor in the gallery
He systematically sifted through it to remove invertebrates
How did Dion set up his workspace in the gallery
He constructed a makeshift desk with saplings, twine, and tin cans
What tools did Dion use while working on “A Meter of Jungle”
He used tweezers and magnifying glasses
What remains of “A Meter of Jungle”
A photographic diptych showing the patch of forest extracted for the show
(A Meter of Jungle) What does the orange flagging tape in the photographs symbolize
It symbolizes the disjointedness between the Earthwork created in the rainforest and the mundane activity performed in the museum
Mode of presenting what is similarly conceived in works throughtout the period
the labor of taxonomic classification
Who is mentioned as a reference point for “A Meter of Jungle”
The early twentieth-century natural historian William Beebe
In what year did William Beebe fill his “war-bag” with materials from the Brazilian rainforest
1915
What items did Beebe include in his “war-bag”
He included leaves, sticks, moss, earth, and mold
How long was Beebe’s boat ride back to New York
ten-day boat ride
What organization was Beebe employed by when he collected these materials
New York Zoological Park (now the Bronx Zoo)
What division did Beebe later found
Department of Tropical Research
What title informs Dion’s earlier work produced in 1992
The N.Y. Bureau of Tropical Conservation
Where did Dion sort through materials for The N.Y. Bureau of Tropical Conservation
In the American Fine Arts gallery in New York
Where did Dion gather the materials he sorted in the American Fine Arts gallery in New York
He gathered them in the Orinoco Basin of Venezuela
How were the materials displayed in The N.Y. Bureau of Tropical Conservation
They were stacked on open shelves for display
How did The New Yorker describe the show at the time
“of special interest to those scholars and voyeurs who are glorified file clerks at heart.”
What similar aspect is highlighted between The N.Y. Bureau of Tropical Conservation and “A Meter of Jungle”
Both exhibit a potential tedium for viewers related to their scientific activities
What interests does Dion have
Environmental politics, natural history, performance art, and the display conventions of museums
What effect can simplistic scientific busywork have on environments
It can have a profound effect on how environments are understood and treated
What year were both “A Meter of Jungle’s” & “The N.Y. Bureau of Tropical Conservation” created that reflect Dion’s concern for the tropics
1992
What artwork from the previous year served as an outgrowth for Dion’s 1992 installations
On Tropical Nature
How long did Dion spend in the Venezuelan rainforest collecting flora and fauna for “On Tropical Nature”
3 weeks
Where did Dion send the collected flora and fauna
To the Sala Mendoza in Caracas
How were the collected samples arranged upon arrival at the museum
They were placed in rows on tables according to the order in which they were removed
What comprises the form of “On Tropical Nature” today
A sample of the deposits collected
How many discrete sculptures were created from the samples of “On Tropical Nature”
4 discrete sculptures
Where are the sculptures from “On Tropical Nature” now located
They’re dispersed among different museum collections
What was done with other samples collected for On Tropical Nature
They were reused in The N.Y. Bureau of Tropical Research
What years did Dion’s engagement with “On Tropical Nature” span
1991 and 1992
Which continents are mentioned in relation to Dion’s projects during the engagement with “On Tropical Nature”
North & South America
What primary theme has Dion’s practice consistently dealt with since the late 1980s
Ecological crisis
How have most critics addressed the environmental importance of Dion’s work
As either an antiquated passion for “natural history” or strictly an activist call to action
What specific ecological area does Dion’s extended treatment provide a more exacting view on
The tropical rainforest
Two forms “tropics” took in Dion’s work in 1989
1) interactive information stations 2)didactic video programs and pamphlets reporting on rainforest depletion
An example of an interactive information station
a library-looking-cart called “Tropical Rainforest Preserves”, created by Dion and William Schefferine
Made “Tropical Rainforest Preserves”
Mark Dion & William Schefferine
When did “tropics” first appear in Dion’s work
1989
What were some of the touchstone environmental issues of the late 1980s and early 1990s
The tropical rainforest, the earth’s depleted ozone layer, acid rain, nuclear energy, and the rise of consumer recycling
How did public awareness of the rainforest as an environmental concern escalate
It escalated gradually, beginning with sporadic reports in the 1970s that increased over the next two decades
When was the identification of an “ozone hole” above Antarctica announced
1985
By what years had the coverage of tropical rainforests become remarkably extensive
1991–92
What major event coincided with the creation of “A Meter of Jungle”
The United Nations “Earth Summit” in Rio de Janeiro in 1992
How many nations attended the United Nations “Earth Summit”
172 nations
How significant was the 1992 Earth Summit in terms of United Nations gatherings
It was the first such gathering convened by the United Nations in 20 years
describes countries in the southern hemisphere
Global South (pg. 82)
What does Dion claim his work does not address directly
“Tropical nature” per se
What does Dion focus on regarding the tropical rainforest
The cultural representation of tropical nature across the past 300 years
How does Dion view the relationship between the lands of the equatorial tropics and European colonialism
The lands were a key location for European colonialism, profiting the Northern hemisphere from the raw materials and labor of the Southern hemisphere
By the 1990s, how long had the nations of the Global South been officially decolonized
For decades
What ongoing effect of colonization does Dion highlight in relation to the rainforest
The environmental crisis of rainforest depletion
What inequalities does Dion link to the environmental crisis of rainforest depletion
The lingering inequalities of the colonial North–South divide
What contemporary concern does “A Meter of Jungle” address
The current environmental crisis
What past practice does the work perform that contributed to the current crisis
Extractionist natural science
How is “A Meter of Jungle” described in terms of its tone
It’s both deadly serious and open to engaging with history in a performative and even satirical manner
What does Dion acknowledge about his insect classifications
They were pointless
