Beyond the edge

An exploration of a new horizon for our common collective future on planet Earth through The Edge, an exhibition by Álvaro Laiz.

Through storytelling, artists are in a unique position to catalyse change and lead by example, helping us transition to a more sustainable future for all. Artists can play a vital role in the arts and in the community to promote and scale up the solutions to climate change and waste by embedding environmental sustainability practices in their work.

Beyond the Edge aims to explore new horizons in environmental practices through The Edge, an exhibition by Álvaro Laiz, a Spanish contemporary artist and National Geographic Fellow and Explorer. Beyond the Edge is a project by Álvaro Laiz and UreCulture.

Álvaro Laiz embarked on a seven-year journey from the Bering Strait in Russia to the Americas, working with indigenous peoples to explore concepts of identity, time and space. The culmination of this work was his exhibition The Edge which took place in 2022 at the Museo Universidad de Navarra (Spain). The Edge featured photography, large-scale video and immersive installations. You can take a virtual tour of the exhibition here

"One of the most beautiful functions of art is to envisage worlds that do not yet exist, to imagine them, give them form, help them be born and seen. Beyond the Edge explores a further step: combining the power of storytelling with data analysis to seek a more sustainable future for all."

Álvaro Laiz
Maps to the Invisible, 2022, three-channel video installation with sound, 12 min © Álvaro Laiz
Beyond the Edge

What we did

Calculated the carbon footprint of the artwork production and field research, participating in the Climate Neutral Now (an initiative of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change).

Took responsibility for the carbon footprint through donations aligned with the Gallery Climate Coalition’s Strategic Climate Funds.

Carried out an innovation project in circular design for the exhibition museography.

Engaged in sustainability storytelling through this website.

EVERYTHING WE DO LEAVES A FOOTPRINT ON THE PLANET
The carbon footprint for Álvaro’s five years of field research, and the production of the artwork for The Edge exhibition, came to a total of: 
22.5 TCO2E
equivalent to 10 x the annual energy consumption of the average Spanish household
Through (RE)FRAME
We reduced the carbon footprint of the frames for the artwork by:
80%
We diverted 210 kilos of waste from landfill.
210 kg
Beyond the Edge 2023.
A project by UreCulture and Álvaro Laiz.

This project was possible thanks to National Geographic Society, Burroughs Wellcome Fund and the Museo Universidad de Navarra.