Gulf of Maine Research Institute (GMRI) and the Portland Museum of Art (PMA) Programming
Through the lens of the extraordinary work of Clifford Ross, the Portland Museum of Art and Gulf of Maine Research Institute will co-host an immersive, thought-provoking slate of public events throughout the Fall. We hope you'll dive below the surface with us!
Sea State: Understanding Sea Level Rise at GMRI
6-7:30 p.m. Thursday, October 28
FREE, IN-PERSON EVENT AT GULF OF MAINE RESEARCH INSTITUTE, 350 COMMERCIAL STREET, PORTLAND, ME
Light Waves IV, 2019, computer-generated video on LED wall, 96 x 48 inches. Courtesy of the artist and Ryan Lee Gallery © Clifford Ross
Join us for an engaging conversation around our changing climate, the power of water, and what both mean for our community. While many have heard about sea level rise and storm surge, it’s challenging to internalize what this means for the places we collectively value. Digital imagery from the Clifford Ross: Sightlines exhibition will be displayed in the Cohen Center for Interactive Learning at GMRI at the forefront of our exploration of interactive data sets and maps, providing a powerful visual of our water resources.
Guests will participate in a facilitated discussion led by Gayle Bowness to understand the impacts of sea level rise and weather events on local community resources such as roads, hospitals, and schools. Informed communities can effectively prepare for this critical challenge that has the potential to fundamentally change our local landscape. Refreshments served from 5:30 - 6 p.m., followed by our presentation.
Please register by Wednesday, October 27 to reserve your seat.
Gayle Bowness manages the Municipal Climate Action Program through the Climate Center at GMRI, which engages coastal communities in better understanding local sea level rise impacts and provides them with knowledge, skills, and tools to develop community-focused and data-driven resilience plans for coastal flooding.
Gayle joined the Gulf of Maine Research Institute in 2005 with a passion to meld science and education. She has a bachelor’s degree in Marine Biology from Dalhousie University, Nova Scotia and a bachelor’s degree in Science Education from Unity College, Maine. She received a Master of Science degree from Lesley University, Massachusetts in Ecological Teaching and Learning.
High Tides and Hot Chocolate: Coastal Flooding Citizen Science Meet-Up at GMRI
11 a.m.-12 p.m. Friday, November 5
FREE, IN-PERSON EVENT starting AT GULF OF MAINE RESEARCH INSTITUTE, 350 COMMERCIAL STREET, PORTLAND, ME
The work of Clifford Ross explores the natural world, prompting audiences to engage with the vitality and wonder of nature in an era of global climate change. Did you know that your photographs of water can be used to help scientists and municipalities gather local, accurate data that is critical to building resilience and preparing for the challenge of sea level rise in our community?
With the City of Portland, GMRI and the PMA request your help in better understanding the local impacts of coastal flooding. This citizen science meet-up will feature GMRI Sea Level Rise expert Gayle Bowness, along with municipal partners and the PMA, to document water level and flooding impacts at coastal flood monitoring sites throughout the city. This event will coincide with a known King Tide, an exceptionally high tide that occurs during a new or full moon.
We'll meet at GMRI at 11:00 a.m. for a brief overview and walk down to Commercial Street to flooded areas to collect data together. Light refreshments will be served before we depart.
Sightlines and the Sea: Reflections on the Art and Science of Water
6-7 p.m., Thursday, December 2
Image: Clifford Ross (United States, born 1952), Hurricane XVII 2000, archival pigment print on Japanese-style Gampi paper, 15 1/8 x 19 1/4 inches. Courtesy of the artist and Ryan Lee Gallery © Clifford Ross
Join community representatives from a variety of scientific and artistic disciplines as they reflect on the hurricane waters captured by Clifford Ross. Panelists will share perspectives on the qualities of water, meteorology, recreation, photography, and conservation as they examine what is visible and invisible in the waves.
Included on the panel is Dave Reidmiller, the Director of the Climate Center at GMRI, Ivy Frignoca, chief advocate for Casco Bay, Jan Piribeck, artist and professor emeritus, University of Southern Maine Art Department, and John Cannon, marine program manager at the National Weather Service in Gray, Maine.
Dave Reidmiller is the Director of the Climate Center at GMRI, where he draws across the breadth of the organization to help people, communities, and businesses understand and anticipate how climate change affects them. Prior to joining GMRI, Dave served in a variety of senior positions for the federal government, including most recently as a climate advisor to the Biden-Harris Presidential Transition Team. As Acting Director of the Northeast and Southeast Climate Adaptation Science Centers (CASC) with the U.S. Geological Survey, he oversaw a unique partnership between the federal government and university consortia to advance and deliver science to help fish, wildlife, habitat, and people adapt to a changing climate. Before joining the CASC Network, Dave directed the Fourth National Climate Assessment as part of the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy, where he coordinated the work of 300+ volunteer experts from across the country in an effort to understand and address climate risks facing the nation. Dr. Reidmiller has deep international experience, as well, having served as the State Department's Chief Climate Scientist for five years under the Obama Administration, where he led U.S. engagement in the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change and was the lead U.S. science and technology negotiator for the Paris Agreement. Dave also served as a Fellow in the U.S. Senate where he advised Senator Mark Udall on a range of energy, environment, and public lands issues, as well as a Mirzayan Fellow at the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine.
As Casco Baykeeper, Ivy Frignoca is the chief advocate for Casco Bay. In speaking passionately on behalf of the Bay, she is able to draw on her experiences, including as an environmental educator, an advocate for Vermont’s public lands and Lake Champlain, and most recently, as a Senior Attorney with Conservation Law Foundation. Her previous work on oceans, clean water, and clean air issues throughout New England provides her with in-depth knowledge of the issues she continues to confront, including ocean acidification, excess nitrogen, and reducing wastewater discharges and stormwater runoff.
Jan Piribeck is an artist and professor emeritus, University of Southern Maine Art Department. She holds an MFA in Visual Art from Northern Illinois University in Dekalb, IL. The focus of her current work is on an interdisciplinary project that looks at the impacts of changing ecologies on coastal communities in Maine and Greenland through art and shared experience. She is a founding member of the King Tide Party, an artists' collective that hosts parties to observe tidal inundation in Portland and Casco Bay. Her work has been featured in exhibitions such as Anthropocenic: Art About the Natural World in the Human Era, Bates College Museum of Art, Lewiston, ME and Meltdown, an exhibition of artists whose work was based in the Arctic or Antarctica, Center for Maine Contemporary Art, Rockland, ME.
John Cannon is the marine program manager at the National Weather Service in Gray, Maine. He is interested in forecasting and researching the impacts of large, battering waves triggered by New England Nor’easters. Having lived along the changing shoreline of Southern Maine, John has a deep appreciation for our eroding beaches."
High Tides and Hot Chocolate: Coastal Flooding Citizen Science Meet-Up at GMRI
11:3o a.m.-12:30 p.m. Monday, December 6
FREE, IN-PERSON EVENT starting AT GULF OF MAINE RESEARCH INSTITUTE, 350 COMMERCIAL STREET, PORTLAND, ME
The work of Clifford Ross explores the natural world, prompting audiences to engage with the vitality and wonder of nature in an era of global climate change. Did you know that your photographs of water can be used to help scientists and municipalities gather local, accurate data that is critical to building resilience and preparing for the challenge of sea level rise in our community?
With the City of Portland, GMRI and the PMA request your help in better understanding the local impacts of coastal flooding. This citizen science meet-up will feature GMRI Sea Level Rise expert Gayle Bowness, along with municipal partners and the PMA, to document water level and flooding impacts at coastal flood monitoring sites throughout the city. This event will coincide with a known King Tide, an exceptionally high tide that occurs during a new or full moon.
We'll meet at GMRI at 11:30 a.m. for a brief overview and walk down to Commercial Street to flooded areas to collect data together. Light refreshments will be served before we depart.
This event is part of a new partnership with the Gulf of Maine Research Institute (GMRI) and the Portland Museum of Art (PMA). Together GMRI and PMA invite our communities to explore the power of water and the impacts of sea level rise through artistic and scientific perspectives.
