Glacier Elegies Book Talk with Jaanika Peerna, Riitta Ikonen, and Zoë Foster

In celebration of the launch of Jaanika Peerna’s newly published monograph Glacier Elegies (Terra Nova Press, 2022), join us for a panel discussion with artists Jaanika Peerna and Riitta Ikonen in conversation with curator and advisor Zoë Foster!

Much of Jaanika Peerna’s recent work is a lament to glaciers and natural ice. Her ongoing project Glacier Elegy forms the central core of this publication; the book presents an in-depth look at this iconic work, through essays, images of works and performances, as well as the artist’s own words. In doing so, it shows how a contemporary artist in her prime addresses the climate emergency. The book touches on ecological grief and looks at how Peerna and other key contemporary artists have used the subject of ice to highlight the global climate emergency. It includes essays by Robert MacFarlane, Janet Passehl, Celina Jeffrey, and an interview by Joana P. R. Neves, situating Peerna’s work and envisioning how creative acts imagine ecological relations in the face of rapidly changing climates and environments, while also giving voice to the difficult emotions of fear, trauma, grief, and mourning. Peerna’s work offers us a way through.

Likewise, Riitta Ikonen highlights themes such as climate change and the pollution of the Baltic Sea through her work. She also frequently examines the relationship between humans and the natural world. This is evident in her ongoing photography and sculpture project Eyes as Big as Plates, in collaboration with Norwegian artist Karoline Hjorth.

Peerna and Ikonen will discuss art and environmental practices related to the book with Foster, the editor of Glacier Elegies, during an in-person program in Volvo Hall. Glacier Elegies is out from MIT Press on March 1, 2022; purchase the book here.