Lecture ‘Carbon echoes and the climate emergency’ at Werkleitz

In this presentation, artist Kat Austen will discuss her diverse methods for artistic engagement with the environment. Austen creates multimedia works that develop the aesthetics of sustainability, using methods including DIY science, acoustic ecologies, site specific performance and new material studies. In the context of the climate crisis, Austen will discuss ‘Stranger to the Trees’, a multimedia artwork that focuses on microplastics, themselves products of fossil fuel-intensive industrial processes, and their coexistence with trees in forests as carbon sinks. ‘This Land is not Mine’ looks at the post-extractive landscape of Lusatia as the region transitions from brown coal mining towards sustainability. Touching on these and other works, Austen will discuss artistic approaches to questions of anthropogenic impact and emotional responses to contemporary environmental realities.

Sunday, June 27th 17:00–18:00

Werkleitz Festival 2021

The Gravity of Trees/ Die Anziehungskraft der Bäume

Audiowalk on the essay ‘Laubwerk’ by Marion Poschmann, winner of the WORTMELDUNGEN-Literaturpreis 2021. Created by Second Nature Lab artists Kat Austen and Moritz Frischkorn.

27th June 2021, 3 pm – 5 pm
Wherever you are & Frankfurt Main, Germany

Meeting point for live release event in Bornheim/Nordend (East), Frankfurt
Registration for the guided walk at info@wortmeldungen.org until 23.06.

The link to the teaser video

Produced by Crespo Foundation

In cooperation with Mousonturm and NODE

Stranger to the Trees at The WRO Media Art Biennale

June 18th – July 23rd 2021


Kat Austen is thrilled to finally present the multimedia artwork Stranger to the Trees to the public. During her time as a resident at Wro Art Center in the context of the EMAP/EMARE program she had the chance to realise this project. Kat will be present in Wroclaw next Friday and Saturday – please feel cordially invited to the opening!

The WRO Media Art Biennale is the major forum for new media art in Poland, and one of the leading international art events in Central Europe. Since its inception in 1989, WRO has been presenting art forms created using new media for artistic expression and communication, exploring current creative territories and building a critical perspective toward emerging issues in art, technology and society.

Collaboration with WPI students on the project ‘Participatory Action Research and Soundscape Collection Methods for Cultural Preservation ‘

The goal of this project was to assist the Studio Austen team with refining current remote participatory action research methods used for the This Land is Not Mine project and to explore the application of these methods for cultural preservation in the Jiu Valley, Romania.

Congratulations to the Worcester Polytechnic Institute IPQ students Ryan Birchfield, Hannah Brooks, Adele Burton and Mackenzie Goldschlager who worked with Studio Austen over the last two months for completing a fantastic project!

Link to the ”Participatory Action Research and Soundscape Collection Methods for Cultural Preservation’ project