Is, träd och andra feministiska figurationer. Klimatforskning och den scenkonstnärliga sinnlighetens betydelse

Abstract

This article investigates the ways in which research on climate change and performing arts converge, intersect, and fertilize each other. Through conversation, the researchers examine the questions: What can researchers learn from art-based work methods regarding knowledge and management of climate change? What can be embodied in a scientific text, or conveyed through performing arts? The article is inspired by approaches to epistemology and ontology in stage arts. The text takes the form of a dialogue between two researchers: one with a background in the field of feminist and intersectional climate research, one with a background in feminist and intersectional cultural studies and studies of performing arts. Taking conceptual departure in what is labelled by, amongst others, Donna Haraway and Rosi Braidotti as feminist figurations, the authors investigate the intersections and differences between climate research and performing arts. Empirically, the article is based on two performances: The National Park (Nationalparken) and The Polar Travellers (Polarfararna), both produced within the Swedish national touring theatre Riksteatern’s thematic initiative Human and Nature. The theoretical framework of the article is dialogic and rests on the work of amongst others Viktor Shklovsky, Peggy Phelan, Mark Carey, Jamie Lorimer, Bruno Latour, and Judith Butler.