Art is Back on at NYC's Governors Island with Meg Webster's 'Wave' Exhibition

Just off the ferry, amidst the tides of New York Harbor and the lush backdrop of the island’s greenery, sits The Arts Center at Governors Island. Overseen by the Lower Manhattan Cultural Council, the newly reopened center welcomes visitors back with a nature-focused exhibition by multimedia artist Meg Webster. Titled Wave, the show features six works that span over 30 years of the artist’s storied career. 

From a new, giant moss-covered mound to a video the artist captured at a Maine waterfall in 1996 to an audio recording of the sounds of birds and wildlife taken in one of the last uncut forests in the U.S., Webster’s work contemplates the relationship we have to the natural world. Speaking with L’OFFICIEL, the artist says that the exhibition is not overtly a commentary on sustainability, but more so on “nature and man and experiencing and caring for it.” Although, she concludes, “That’s what sustainability is, really.”

Bringing nature into the four walls of a gallery space does indeed confront us with the role it has in other areas of our lives, too. Take clothes, for example: As one of the most polluting industries in the world, sustainability has been top of mind for the future of fashion. Just as Webster’s exhibition looks at “carefully creating nature in man-made form,” as the artist says, using natural elements to transform into art, fashion labels are converting naturally-derived materials into sustainable products.

Made possible by Ugg, Wave represents a continuation of the brand’s support of environmental responsibility. The shoe label, known for its fuzzy, sherpa-lined boots, launched its Feel Good platform in 2020, which includes its sustainability efforts. 

“Last fall, we debuted Feel Good, our corporate social responsibility platform to articulate our long-term goals and commitment to people and the planet,” Andrea O’Donnell, President of Ugg & Koolaburra by Ugg at Deckers Brands, tells L’OFFICIEL. “Our partnership with Lower Manhattan Cultural Council (LMCC) in support of the incredible work of artist Meg Webster is to bring awareness to climate change. Meg’s creations are not only beautiful, but a profound commentary on the earth and ecosystem; one which we must collectively protect.”

Regeneration was a main theme of the exhibition (which featured a growing installation of pollinating plants that will later be added to the GrowNYC teaching garden), and one that Ugg has been focusing on in its designs. Working to minimize its environmental footprint, the brand has put resources towards using recycled, repurposed, plant-based, renewable, and certified sustainable fibers in its designs. The culmination of this is its Plant Power collection which is made with carbon-neutral, plant-based materials, like the tencel lyocell fluff derived from eucalyptus trees or the soles created from renewable sugarcane. After the success of the collection’s launch, Ugg will unveil more colorways of its Plant Power styles this August.

To celebrate Webster’s exhibition and Ugg’s Feel Good program, a special event was held at the LMCC Arts Center at Governors Island with stars like Girls’ Zosia Mamet and Generation’s Chase Sui Wonders in attendance. As the evening reminded, stepping forward in sustainable footwear is just one way to make a difference. 

“You need to sustain nature, appreciate it, and act to protect it,” Webster says. 

Meg Webster's Wave is open to the public at the Arts Center at Governors Island through October 31, 2021.