Intertidal Encounters: Plastic Surface

San Pedro, CA – Angels Gate Cultural Center (AGCC), in conjunction with the Artist At Work(AAW) program, is pleased to present Intertidal Encounters, a new panel discussion series ledby Taylor Griffith, AAW Artist Fellow. This public program series brings together artists andscientists whose work focuses on the ocean, with an emphasis on southern California’scoastline.

Intertidal Encounters will instigate exploratory dialogue that considers our natural world through the complementary, yet divergent perspectives of art and science. We hope these interactive conversations develop our shared community understanding of the urgency of our rapidly changing climate, and prompt us to action. As AGCC is located in coastal San Pedro, the California coastline is a poignant focus for these discussions with emphasis on the ocean as key to our future. Intertidal Encounters presents a series of perspectives, experiences, and ideas about the future of blue ecosystems and how we understand them in the current moment. Our inaugural event invites ecologically-minded artist Blue McRight and Captain Charles Moore, discoverer of the northern pacific garbage patch. Entitled Plastic Surface, artist Taylor Griffith leads this first conversation about ocean plastics and marine debris – focusing on their impacts to our local coastline and environments far offshore.

Taylor Griffith is a multi-disciplinary artist from Oakland, California. Currently he is living and working in Los Angeles. He received his BA of Photography with a Minor in Studio Art from the University of La Verne and an MFA of Visual Arts from Art Center College of Design. His work calls into question the relationships between natural systems and changing human interactions with the landscape. Taylor takes a multi-medium approach to the interdisciplinary nexus of art and ecology. He works in photography, sculpture, time-based media, and printmaking. He collaborates with scientists, artists, and organizations to get out in the field, collecting imagery, audio recordings, notes, and samples that then come into the studio to be distilled down into a body of work. His work aims to continue conversations about the challenges that face our planet and act as a place to start conversations about moving towards a more ecologically minded future. Taylor Griffith is a current Artist At Work in LA County Fellow, developing creative public programs in partnership with AGCC that urge civic social engagement within our communities.

Artists At Work (AAW) is a workforce resilience program designed to support the rebuilding of healthy communities through artistic civic engagement. THE OFFICE performing arts + Film has partnered with the LA County Department of Arts and Culture to implement the AAW initiative in Los Angeles with the goals of supporting local cultural organizations, paying participating artists a living wage, and building healthy communities through partnership. Angels Gate Cultural Center is partnering with ocean research institute AltaSea at the Port of Los Angeles and artist Taylor Griffith, to deliver free and engaging programming to the local communities in the South Bay Harbor region.