Ensnared in but fed up with the inanity of late capitalism and environmental ruin, this thesis examines the ways in which contemporary artists are working against the grain of the dominant anthropocentric Western culture to seek new pathways out of the so-called Anthropocene. The artists under discussion, Carolina Caycedo, Krista Caballero and Frank Ekeberg, and Natalie Jeremijenko, create participatory projects that simultaneously critique the entanglement of human practices and loss of species and encourage their audiences (and the larger global public) to formulate new relationships with our fellow Earthly critters and our damaged ecosystems. This research takes a leaf from new materialist methodologies and the work of scholars such as Donna Haraway and T. J. Demos to consider how artists have deviated from the accustomed Western humanist notion of the individual as separate from nature to instead become recognizant of our critical role as one animal among many imbricated in a remarkably complex but endangered system of exchange. With its implications of collectivity and becoming-with each other, audience participatory art lends itself well to this thinking. The three case studies therefore work through the advantages and potential limitations of art serving as a medium for small-scale social change at a moment when larger global movements toward ecological sustainability are absent. The discussed participatory projects make apparent that there does exist an elasticity to human thought that can open potential futures in which the human species is less toxic and more responsive to the multifarious animacies that mill about this imperiled planet. / Art History

Made available in DSpace on 2014-12-17T15:55:05Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 RobertoR_DISSERT.pdf: 1125393 bytes, checksum: 639c9308ec555425dc29f7b3bad222f8 (MD5) Previous issue date: 2014-01-31 / The diversity of fish species from South America has been affected by various anthropogenic practices. Some studies have reported the influence that illegal transferring or introduction of exotic species have on the trophic webs of continental lakes. The loss of diversity on fish populations and consequent impacts on fishery are commonly evidenced in these cases. The Brazilian Northeast has ponds for which exotic Amazonian species were transferred as Extremoz Lake. These environments serve as study models for comparison and investigation about the possible impacts of these introductions. We tested the hypothesis that loss of species that this trend can be related with the insertion of the genus Cichla, commonly documented as top predator in its endemic environment. Possible structural causes that interfere in other processes such as migration were also investigated. Thus, the local ecological knowledge of fishermen and a current ecotrophic model were used. We took samples of phytoplankton, zooplankton and fishes during two annual cycles. Concurrently, we made interviews with the fishing community. In fact, there are relations between the loss of fish and the insertion of peacock bass in Extremoz Lake. However, Cichla kelberi was not indicated as primary factor to explain fish species decline. The construction of bridges located in the Rio Doce was main factor for respondents and what explains loss of species. The migration of saltwater fish and / or from the river to Extremoz Lake is hindered by the unsuitability of the crossing-streams that are under these structures. According to the ecotrophic model Hoplias malabaricus was considered key-species and Cichla kelberi top predator. This last trend was similarly noticed in the stomach and local ecological knowledge of fishermen analysis. Overfishing simulations to Cichla kelberi resulted that only raising its captures in 200%, other native species would increase their biomass values only 15 to 30% (in 6 years).The negative effects of the alien species introduction without prior studies and lack of investments in appropriating these constructions to the needs of the fish fauna structures seem to act simultaneously. Both are causing the decline of fish species richness and consequent local artisanal fishery collapse / A diversidade de esp?cies de peixes da Am?rica do Sul vem sendo afetada por diversas pr?ticas antr?picas. Alguns estudos t?m documentado os efeitos resultantes destas transfer?ncias ilegais de esp?cies ex?ticas. A perda de riqueza da ictiofauna e consequente desarticula??o da pesca t?m sido evidenciadas nestes casos. O nordeste brasileiro apresenta lagoas para as quais foram transferidas esp?cies ex?ticas amaz?nicas, como a Lagoa de Extremoz. Estes ambientes servem como modelos de estudo para fins de compara??o e investiga??o dos poss?veis impactos decorrentes destas introdu??es. Testamos a hip?tese de que a perda de riqueza da ictiofauna e consequente desarticula??o da pesca artesanal exibem rela??o com a inser??o do g?nero Cichla, comumente documentado como predador de topo em seu ambiente end?mico. Poss?veis causas estruturais que interferissem em outros processos, como os de migra??o, tamb?m foram investigadas. Para tanto, o conhecimento ecol?gico local dos pescadores e um modelo ecotr?fico atual foram utilizados. Durante dois ciclos anuais, efetuamos amostragens de fitopl?ncton, zoopl?ncton e peixes. Concomitantemente, efetuamos entrevistas com a comunidade de pescadores. Segundo os resultados obtidos, pode-se inferir que existe um padr?o de queda de riqueza das esp?cies de peixes da lagoa de Extremoz. Por?m, Cichla kelberi n?o foi indicado como fator principal para que este decl?nio viesse a ocorrer. A constru??o de pontes, localizadas no Rio Doce, foi apontada pelo conhecimento ecol?gico local como fator prim?rio para que o n?mero de esp?cies diminu?sse neste ambiente. A migra??o de peixes de ?gua salgada e/ou provenientes do Oceano Atl?ntico para a Lagoa de Extremoz parece ter sido impedida com os impactos causados por estas obras c?veis, especialmente no que diz respeito ? inadequa??o das manilhas ?s necessidades da ictiofauna. Segundo o modelo ecotr?fico, Hoplias malabaricus foi considerada esp?cie-chave e Cichla kelberi predador de topo, tend?ncia similarmente obtida nas an?lises estomacais e atrav?s do conhecimento ecol?gico local dos pescadores. Simula??es de sobre pesca para o tucunar? indicaram inviabilidade em rela??o ao aumento da captura desta esp?cie. Em 6 anos, mesmo aumentando a pesca de tucunar? em 200%, outras esp?cies poderiam aumentar sua biomassa somente em 15 e 30%. A influ?ncia negativa da inser??o de esp?cies ex?ticas sem estudo pr?vio para determinados ambientes e a falta de investimento em estruturas adequadas ?s necessidades da ictiofauna parecem atuar simultaneamente, causando o decl?nio da riqueza de esp?cies e consequente colapso da pesca artesanal local