MFA student Mariana Castro Azpíroz’s work featured in Climate Storytelling 2075 Project

On Sept.18, Iowa State University Department of English MFA student Mariana Castro Azpíroz’s work was part of the “Imagining Climate Futures” showcase in New York City. Castro Azpíroz was invited to participate in the opening of the exhibition where 18 original works created by members of the Climate Storytelling 2075 Cohort (including Castro Azpíroz) were showcased to an audience of over 400 people. The gallery show was part of New York Climate Week.

The projects exhibited in the Queens Council on the Arts gallery dealt with topics of environmental justice, community resilience, and interspecies kinship. Castro Azpíroz ’s project, “Caretakers’ New Dictionary,” is a zine that imagines what words, both new and repurposed, would be commonly used in 2075 if we lived in her vision of a desirable climate future – one that was centered around ethics of care, arts of noticing, and multispecies kinship.

Caretakers’ New Dictionary

Castro Azpíroz’s vision for the dictionary came from the question, “How can we imagine a more hopeful future as something we want to look forward to?”

In this future, Castro Azpíroz imagined, “We have a different set of values, we have different concepts, and we have different things we want to express, and we need words for that.”

To construct her dictionary, Castro Azpíroz used root words from many languages. She spoke with international students, asking for compatible concepts in their native cultures. She also read the Oxford English Dictionary.

A poem opens each section in her zine. There are also prompts for self-reflection and an invitation to add a word or a concept for the next edition of the “Caretakers’ New Dictionary.”

Castro Azpíroz was excited to be part of the Climate Storytelling 2075 gallery show, and it gave her the opportunity to experience some other Climate Week events.

“I did get to go to some of the events and it was impressive how many things were happening at the same time,” she said.

Castro Azpíroz credits her MFA classes with helping her find her voice and bring her dictionary to life.

“I never thought I would actually end up at a gallery. So that was really cool,” she said.

Where can I see the work?

You can find “Caretakers’ New Dictionary” online, along with Mariana’s artist statement and some photographs of the event: https://climatefutures.art/caretakers-new-dictionary

An Interview:  Mariana discusses her work and writing process.

https://climatefutures.art/announcements/elijah-valerjev-mariana-castro-azpiroz