MA Media and Globalisation students visit Nottingham Contemporary to explore global environmental issues

The students visited ‘Word for World is Forest’ by Daniel Steegmann Mangrane

Students studying MA Media and Globalisation at Nottingham Trent University recently visited Nottingham Contemporary to visit the exhibition ‘Word for World is Forest’ by Daniel Steegmann Mangrane. The exhibition was highly relevant to the course due to its global appeal on environmental issues. The students also visited another exhibition around women’s struggles across the world as part of the trip.

The trip was arranged to complement the themes and topics covered on the course around the effects of globalisation and allowed students to understand the different ways in which this can be represented. It also allowed the students to connect with Nottingham Contemporary and understand its importance to the culture of Nottingham.

In ‘Word for World is Forest’, Daniel uses multi-media technologies including installations, a 16mm film and virtual reality to represent Mata Atlântica, a highly endangered rainforest along the Atlantic coast of Brazil. His work looks at how this complex environment has been subjected to the pressure of globalization, and thus its unique wildlife is being threatened with extinction.

The students were able to see that abstract concepts linked to globalisation are in reality very close to issues that affect our lives. The exhibitions at Nottingham Contemporary allowed students to engage with a world of knowledge in a different format - art – and understand its influence on society. The visit sparked discussion around both the effects of globalisation on our environment, and the role of art as a way of understanding the world.

Our students commented on their experience of the day. David Godridge said: “The trip to Nottingham Contemporary was a great experience. It allowed me to reflect on society through a series of different artworks, which was an interesting opportunity as it’s not somewhere I’d ordinarily visit! I also really appreciated the opportunity to share the experience with my course mates and learn with them outside of university.”

International student Ye Ma added: “The Nottingham Contemporary art exhibitions based around women in society and the environment allowed me to get a bigger picture of what society is really like all around the world concerning these big issues. It was great to see the different feminist interpretations and I felt that I gained a lot from the day.”

Quanyao Pu also commented: “I really enjoyed the exhibition. I liked how the artists allowed themselves to bring out some personal beliefs about society within their work. I also think the artists were very sensitive in their work, which generates a good response from the viewer.”