David Burke: Solastalgia

Solastalgia, the second exhibition in The Greenhouse, features paintings by David Burke.

Derived from nostalgia, Solastalgia is a form of homesickness one gets when one is still at home, but the environment has been altered and feels unfamiliar. The term is specifically referencing change caused by chronic change agents like climate change or mining. Used primarily to describe the negative psychological effect of chronic environmental destruction on an individual’s homeland, or the place they call home.

About the Greenhouse Exhibition Series: The Greenhouse is an exhibition series that focuses on the climate crisis and environmental justice movements in Richmond, CA. The greenhouse effect is a central metaphor for understanding the conditions that account for life on earth as well as how global warming and thus catastrophic climate change work. In this three-part series, Richmond Art Center presents the work of Tanja Geis, David Burke, and Abi Mustapha, who together tell a story and activate an experience of resilience and growth, culminating in a celebration of local environmental activists. Geis transplants imperiled regional fauna, ocean litter, and sculpted intertidal muck into The Greenhouse; Burke tends to the Anthropocene’s industrial production, ecological destruction, and potential regeneration; and Mustapha gathers a bouquet of portraits honoring great Richmonders who have come to our environmental rescue. Seedlings of hope and flowerings of progress are big parts of the landscape in Richmond. 

The three exhibitions in The Greenhouse will be accompanied by a series of public programs and events throughout the year. With gatherings ranging from community bike rides to a speaker series, The Greenhouse Public Programs will be a space to plant, nurture, and grow ideas around environmental justice. 

The Greenhouse is organized in partnership with Round Weather and curated by its director Chris Kerr. Round Weather is a nonprofit art gallery in Oakland, CA committed to alleviating the climate crisis. It directs funds raised through the sale of exceptional contemporary art to three nonprofit organizations selected for their work to mitigate climate change, redress environmental injustice, and advance a just and speedy transition back to sustainable relationships between the Earth and its people.