A new project in Finland will bring artists and scientists together to raise awareness about the climate crisis.
Climate Clock will comprise a new permanent public art trail running through the city of Oulu, Europe’s Capital of Culture in 2026. The trail will feature seven site-specific outdoor installations—each one created by an artist-scientist duo—that celebrate the region’s natural beauty. As one of the world’s northernmost cities, located on the edge of the Arctic Circle, Oulu is experiencing the effects of climate change more rapidly than the global average.
The trail, which will open in June 2026, is curated by Alice Sharp, the founder and artistic director of the UK-based international environmental art organisation Invisible Dust. Sharp has 15 years of experience working with artists and scientists.
She says of the project: “The climate clock is ticking, the snow is melting, and we are learning anew what our forebears knew—that time is not ours to command; that nature keeps its own time. It has been so exciting to see how the artists have embraced scientific environmental thinking in the context of Oulu2026, from [exploring] the archaeological remains of Stone Age spiritual practices to measuring the uncontrollable melting of glaciers.”
The London-based artist Rana Begum’s contribution will be the result of a collaboration with the glaciologist Alun Hubbard from the University of Oulu. Drawing on his research highlighting the alarming rate at which Arctic Circle glaciers are melting, Begum is creating an interactive series of sculptures inspired by Oulu’s subarctic light and the intricate shapes of its sea ice—to be displayed in the city’s central square.
Rana Begum will display a work created in collaboration with the glaciologist Alun Hubbard Courtesy of the artist
Begum, who was born in Bangladesh, another country that is highly vulnerable to climate change, told The Art Newspaper: “During my research visits to Oulu, I have been struck by the exceptional beauty of the low Arctic light, along with the wonderful walks along the seafront, where I have observed the many shapes of the frozen and melting sea ice. Meeting glaciologist Alun with Alice, I realised how the entire Arctic ice world is in motion, with enormous glaciers melting and crashing into the sea due to climate change.”
She added: “This is the first time I have worked with a scientist and our conversations have brought new perspectives, including on how it feels to be standing on a moving melting Arctic glacier.”
The other artists contributing work to the project, are the British-Nigerian ceramic artist Ranti Bam, the Brussels-based visual artist Gabriel Kuri, the Japanese sculptor Takahiro Iwasaki, the Finnish multimedia artist Antti Laitinen and the Danish art group Superflex.
