'Grinnell Mt. Gould Quadtych' from the Art x Climate Gallery

Released in 2023, the Fifth National Climate Assessment (NCA5) includes an Art × Climate gallery intended to engage the public with climate in a new way. The gallery collection features the work of 92 artists, selected from more than 800 submissions. This work may only be reproduced or re-used in connection with the Fifth National Climate Assessment. Any other use must be negotiated with the author.

The NCA5 reports that higher temperatures and longer growing seasons have made parts of the Northern Great Plains more attractive places to settle. Growing regional populations, however, have forced decision makers to strike a balance between urbanized areas, agriculture, ecosystem services, and other factors. The availability of water amid snowpack reductions is one example of growing challenges.

Diane Burke painted this image using oil on canvas. This is Burko’s artist’s statement:

This work portrays Grinnell Glacier in Glacier National Park, Montana in four time periods between 1920 and 2006, with the glacier losing mass in each painting. The piece considers the marks that humanity leaves on the landscape, reflecting the impact of industrial and colonial activity on those same landscapes. While these paintings deal with impending climate catastrophe, rather than lingering in dystopia they celebrate the sublimity of the landscape by honoring the intricate geological and political webs that shape the identity of a place.