Attention earth-lovers and environmentalists of all ages, Arcadia Earth will take you on an educational and artistic trip in ways you’ve never seen before. Located at 718 Broadway in New York City, this multi-sensory art experience created by experiential artist Valentino Vettori, will provide visitors with an immersive, personal look at the environmental problems facing the natural world.
The exhibit consists of 15 rooms, each of which has been designed specifically to highlight an issue that is currently threatening the health of the planet (and of the human race) in some way. These ecological crises range from climate change to food waste and are presented in innovative ways: Arcadia’s attractions have taken on a human scale, and their designs utilize augmented/virtual reality to make those who view them confront the severity of today’s environmental decay.
As guests make their way through Arcadia’s 15,000 square feet of attractions, they will have the chance to traverse a life-size fishing net “entrapment,” to walk beneath the surface of an artificial ocean, and to enter a “cave” composed entirely of 44,000 plastic bags (meant to represent the number used in the state per minute).
Each installation has been developed using upcycled materials and reusable elements, created in collaboration with 12 leading environmental artists including Samuelle Green, Tamara Kotianovsky, Etty Yaniv, Cindy Pease Roe, Poramit Thantapalit, Jesse Harrod, Justin Bolognino/META, Katie Donahue, Katharina Hoerath, Charlotte Becket and Emmy Mikelson. Plus, each of the 15 installations provides educational commentary as a way of empowering individuals with truths about environmental exploitation.
The exhibit culminates in a petition signing room, where visitors can respond how they choose to the information they have acquired during their trip.
Arcadia Earth was designed by Valentino Vettori, an experiential artist with over 20 years of experience in the fashion world who hopes to renegotiate the interaction between individuals and their environments. Tickets for general admission are $33, while students can visit for only $27. Proceeds from ticket sales will be donated to Oceanic Global, an organization that raises awareness concerning the effects of human consumption on our oceans, and a tree will be planted for every ticket purchased.
