In an era where art and environmental sustainability are becoming increasingly intertwined, Alice Audouin stands out as a trailblazer. With over two decades of experience, Alice has seamlessly merged her passion for art with her commitment to environmental advocacy. From her early days at CDC Caisse des Dépôts to founding the influential non-profit Art of Change 21, she has been at the forefront of a movement that seeks to elevate the role of artists in addressing climate change. As she embarks on a new journey as a contributor for The Art Gorgeous monthly writing as “Alice in Warmingland”, we chatted with her about her inspiring journey, ground breaking projects, and her vision for the future.
Join us as we explore the intersection of art and sustainability through the eyes of one of its most passionate advocates.
How did your journey into combining art and environmental sustainability begin, and what inspired you to pursue this unique path?
It was such a long time ago, 20 years! It all started when I worked at CDC Caisse des Dépôts – the French State Bank – to promote CSR (corporate social responsibility) and ISR (socially responsible investment) in France, with a media named Novethic – in 2000. I had studied environmental economics at the university—only one professor was teaching that subject at the Sorbonne! —alongside art history and philosophy. For this job, I had to dive into IPCC reports, and that’s when my awareness of climate change kicked in. It was like a wake-up call, making me realise it was the biggest challenge of our time. At CDC, I realised we were always talking about stakeholders, such as NGOs, and I was surprised not to see any mention of artists in this list. Stakeholders are expected to represent and advocate for the general interests and expectations of society. In my opinion, artists make the best stakeholders for this role. They are often free from personal interests and can express concerns from a long-term perspective. They have a unique ability to envision the future and possess a sense of foreknowledge or prescience that is crucial for addressing societal issues. In 2004, inspired by this idea, I organised and moderated the first conference at UNESCO titled ‘The Artist as Stakeholder.’ It marked one of the first research initiatives focused on contemporary artists addressing environmental issues. This was the start of not only a passion and an expertise but a movement of artists. It was just the beginning, with artists who are not necessarily well known today, such as Amy Balkin, but are truly pioneers of the movement. Celebrating its 20th anniversary this year, this conference marked the start of my path. Now, thousands of artists all over the world are part of this movement.
After my role at CDC, I became the Director of Sustainable Development in the communication sector, and I co-founded in 2008 my first non-profit organisation focused on art and sustainability. In 2014, I transitioned from the corporate world to become a consultant and founded another non-profit that I continue to chair with passion: Art of Change 21, which addresses art and the environment on a larger scale. I now have three areas of expertise: sustainability, responsible communication, and art and the environment.
Can you share a memorable success story where your work significantly influenced a brand or project toward adopting more sustainable practices?
The impacts of my work vary depending on whether I’m acting as a consultant, chair of an association, or curator. This year, collaborating with the LVMH Group as a consultant was particularly rewarding. The Global Brand Direction of LVMH tasked me with bringing the group’s 74 houses on board with responsible communication. A highlight was the successful event they held in March 2024 with all the Chief Marketing Officers and Communication Directors, promoting a new type of storytelling where sustainability is strongly desirable, and it was a great success.
As a curator, it was a joy to open a show in NYC’s Tribeca last February, featuring artists like Otobong Nkanga, Haroon Mirza, and Michael Wang. Two years ago, I was thrilled to learn that Novacène, the major group show I curated in Lille, reached 90,000 visitors.
On the Art of Change 21 side, I am thrilled with our second edition of the Eco-design Art Prize, in partnership with Palais de Tokyo. We had 12 winners, and 15 experts and artists coached them to reduce their environmental impact. It concluded last June, and we measured 100% satisfaction from the laureates! Additionally, last November, we organized a major exhibition of Julian Charrière at Alserkal Avenue for COP28 Climate in Dubai.
In sustainability, very often success is not personal but collective. Art of Change 21 has been bringing art to each COP Climate conference for the past 10 years and is an active member of the Climate Heritage Network, gathering people from the arts, culture, and heritage from all over the world. Three years ago, we joined forces to promote a “Call to action” programme to get culture seen as climate action within UN Climate. At the last COP28 conference, we got the first-ever ministerial meeting and we are now fighting for full recognition of culture as a climate action COP30 in Brazil. We are on the path to something significant and beautiful, and we are doing it together.
You will start contributing to The Art Gorgeous exploring the intersection of art and sustainability. What themes or topics are you most excited to delve into and why?
My goal is to inspire, surprise, have fun, give hope, and motivate people to take action. So be ready!
I will share the best news on art and sustainability and present my favourite artists, thinkers, and innovators that inspire me. There are more than 2000 environmentally engaged artists in my database! I will also include NGOs, eco-gestures, fashion, design, and of course, nature. I’ll talk about forests, corals, diamonds, oil or bacteria. Yes, bacteria are slowly replacing the petrochemical dyes – from your jeans to paintings. As a consultant, activist, and curator, I have three different perspectives from which to see things. This unique position between various worlds allows me to curate a diverse and rich list of insights and inspirations.
What role do you see contemporary art playing in raising awareness and driving action on environmental issues? Could you provide examples of artists or projects that have successfully made an impact?
There are many ways artists are engaging with sustainability. For example, Olafur Eliasson’s “Ice Watch” around COP21 displayed large blocks of ice melting, illustrating how quickly Arctic ice disappears and allowing people to feel the impact of this loss. I am thinking of the Aerocene community by Tomas Saraceno, a scientific and technology-driven utopia based on real research, of imagining a way to travel with just the sun and nothing else, not even solar panels. Saraceno’s Arachnophilia project is another fascinating endeavour, where he encourages a better understanding of spiders and promotes keeping spider webs in art spaces to interact with them differently. He was part of Biocenosis on art and biodiversity, an exhibition that I curated with Art of Change 21. Otobong Nkanga’s practice of care is crucial for understanding our relationship with the world. Her work emphasises experimenting with care to foster a healthier connection with our environment. Many artists are taking action on the ground. Janet Laurence supports regenerative agriculture in Australia, Yinka Shonibare runs an organic farm in Nigeria, and the young French artist Jeremy Gobé works on restoring coral reefs. However, we shouldn’t expect artists to provide concrete solutions. It’s wonderful if they do, but their main contribution lies in shaping mindsets and rethinking the future, time, other species, and what we value and share. Another artist that I love is Haroon Mirza – Beyond using solar panels in his work, he explores what civilization could be if we transitioned from oil to solar energy. His approach is almost anthropological, suggesting that this shift could re-engage our relationship with the cosmos and the sun, which he views as a form of gratitude. He had a significant place in my two last exhibitions Novacene and Crude Gratitude is the title of my last exhibition.
What advice would you give to emerging artists who want to integrate sustainability into their practice? Are there specific resources or networks they should explore?
The artistic sector is very late regarding sustainability compared to other sectors. It’s sad but the artists are still alone – many want to reduce their impact but often must pay for these efforts out of their own pockets, and their contributions often go unrecognised in the art world. While change is happening gradually, in my point of view, the artist is at the centre of the change. It’s concerning that, while major museums are publishing sustainability reports, there is still so little support for the artists themselves, even in art schools. Some tools, such as carbon calculators provided by Gallery Climate Coalition, Vihreä Tiade, Julie’s Bicycle, or our own at Art of Change 21, are available, but there is much more to be done. This is why I decided to create the Eco-design Art Prize with Art of Change 21, and we are launching a resource centre to help artists. Some inspiring artists are creating new ways of taking action and experimenting with solutions. For example, Theo Mercier borrowed 120 tonnes of sand for his work, and Julian Charrière powered his entire exhibition with solar panels. At Art of Change 21, our goal is also to advocate for change and influence the cultural sector to move forward.
Looking ahead, what are some of the future goals and initiatives you have planned for both Art of Change 21 and your work with Audouin Consulting to further the cause of environmental sustainability through art?
With Art of Change 21, we bring art to each COP. We will be at COP30 in Brazil in 2025, and we’re currently working on it. In the past, we’ve collaborated with Hassan Hajjaj for COP22 in Morocco, John Gerrard and Lucy Orta for COP26 in Glasgow, and Julian Charrière for COP28 in Dubai. We will soon announce our artistic program for COP30 in partnership with local players.
Regarding my consulting work, I’m restricted by NDAs, so I can’t share much detail. However,
I am super excited to have a mission focused on sustainability for art and culture for Afalula, the French Agency for AlUla development and to be able to contribute to the fascinating and challenging AlUla project in Saudi Arabia. I’m also eagerly anticipating the outcomes with my new client, Parfums Christian Dior. Additionally, I advise UBS, and you can expect to see great initiatives at the next Basel 25!
And finally, as an independent curator, I will curate a show on Eco-design in Paris next year, with Ecole des Arts Décoratifs and the world’s largest sporting goods retailer Decathlon.
Learn more about Alice’s influential non-profit Art of Change 21 via the website here, her consulting practice here. Plus, make sure to follow their Instagram for regular updates: @artofchange21 and Alice’s personal account @alice.audouin too. She is also on LinkedIn.
Images for this article by Jérôme Mizar. You can find him on Instagram .
