Malia Jensen’s multimedia art practice focuses on natural cycles, the human form and connections with nature. Her works are often visual metaphors that encourage multiple readings from the viewer. The title Eremocene references philosopher and biologist E.O. Wilson’s theory about humankind’s impending “Age of Loneliness” after the rapid decline of the planet’s biodiversity, and Jensen’s related themes of erasure and transformation in this body of work.

This exhibition is the culmination of Jensen’s Nearer Nature: Worth Your Salt project 2019-20, in which carved salt-lick sculptures representing parts of the human form, were situated next to motion-activated cameras throughout Oregon’s wilderness. Video footage captured elk, bobcat, fox, birds, coyotes, mice and raccoons engaging with the salt forms or being in their proximity. Jensen created a video artwork from thousands of sequential 30-second clips of animal activity and the surrounding landscape. The six-hour video of continually rotating surveillance footage highlights mesmerizing sequences of wildlife interactions and encourages us to consider our place in the natural world.

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