A wide shot of a ceramics studio, featuring students working with pottery wheels and other tools.
SAIC faculty member Andrew Yang.

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Andrew S. Yang

Professor

Contact

Professional Site

Bio

A native of rural Massachusetts, I study Nature in its myriad forms. In addition to SAIC, my teaching spans Hampshire College, Massachusetts College of Art & Design, Lesley University, Yale-NUS College, and Duke University. I hold a PhD in Biology (Duke University) and MFA in Visual Arts (Lesley University).

Personal Statement

I work across the visual arts, natural sciences, and history to explore ecological narratives at the intersections of art and science. My work has been exhibited from Oklahoma to Yokohama, including the 14th Istanbul Biennial (2015), Museum of Contemporary Art Chicago (2016), the Spencer Museum of Art (2019), the Smithsonian Museum of Natural History (2021), the Chicago Botanic Garden (2024), and upcoming at the Worcester Museum of Art (2026). Curatorial projects include Earthly Observatory (SAIC Galleries), Making Kin - Worlds Becoming (Center for Humans & Nature), and Biological Agents (Gallery 400). My writing and research can be found in peer-reviewed science journals (Biological Theory, Current Biology); visual arts publications (Art Journal, Leonardo, Journal of Visual Art Practice); as well as various books, including the Routledge Handbook of Art, Science, and Technology Studies and Kinship: Belonging in a World of Relations.

Publications

2024. The poetics and mathematics of air. In Elementals: Air. Vol. 2. D. Miller, G. van Horn, B. Jennings (Editor), N. Brown, C. Santos Perez (eds.) Center for Humans and Nature: Chicago. [online]

2024. Giovanni Aloi & Andrew S. Yang (2024) Earthly Observatory: situated knowledges and curating in the Anthropocene, Journal of Visual Art Practice, 23:4, 421-435.

2022. Snake eyes—a natural history of picturing, perception, and the serpents that lurk within. Revue Captures 7(2) 2022. [online]

2021. Kinshape. In Kinship: Belonging in a World of Relations. G. van Horn, R. Wall Kimmerer, and J. Hausdoerffer (eds.) Center for Humans and Nature: Chicago. [online]

2021. In the middle of something: In search of a meso-aesthetics. In Routledge Handbook of Art, Science & Technology Studies. H.S. Rogers, M.K. Halpern, D. Hannah, K. de Ridder-Vignone. Routledge Press.

2020. Double bubble. Forty-Five: A Journal of Outside Research, Vol 4, March 8, 2020. [online]

Exhibitions

Curation

Earthly Observatory / SAIC Galleries, Chicago / 2021

Making Kin - Worlds Becoming / Center for Humans & Nature / 2021

Biological Agents / Gallery 400, Chicago / 2008

Other Features

Video feature on "Gleanhouse (a Prairie Librarie)" and "Prismatic Landscape" for Lost & Found at the Chicago Botanic Garden

Video feature on "Theory of the Earth Vol. 4" for knowledges at the Spencer Museum of Art

"Flying Gardens of Maybe" featured in Audubon magazine

Portfolio

Courses

Title Department Catalog Term

Description

Symbiosis describes the relationships that bind organisms in a life together. Symbioses can be between species or within species¿bee to flower, mother to child, and even parasite to host. Drawing from ecological, evolutionary, and behavioral research, we will carefully consider the dynamics of cooperation and dependency across cells, food webs, and even urban neighborhood. Studying symbiosis is not only a window into a myriad of extraordinary biological relations, it is also fundamental to systems thinking in the context of sustainability. Weekly readings, in-class exercises, small collaborative projects will be integral to our study, leading to an understanding of how observation and experiment can help us unpack the many complexities of living together.
We will consider the work by Lynn Margulis, Robin Wall-Kimmerer, Charles Darwin,Suzanne Simard, Harry Harlow, Thomas Schelling, Vi Hart, and many others.
Weekly readings, in-class and out-of-class exercises, small collaborative projects.

Class Number

2277

Credits

3

Description

What are the crucial connections between the food we grow and eat to the ongoing challenges of global warming and biodiversity loss? What could it mean to eat ¿sustainably¿? Starting from key ecological principles of food, we will examine the promises and pitfalls of modern-day industrial agriculture, genetically-modified foods, supermarkets, as well as complexities of food waste and emerging food technologies. This exploration of agriculture¿s historical development will also have us confront issues of environmental justice, food independence, and labor that are central to food sustainability today. Contemporary food systems are inherently global and our examination will connect through of U.S. practice and policies. Individual research presentations, short debates, and weekly written assignments will be core components of this course.
Materials, videos, and documentaries will include topics like global warming, nutrient cycling, entomophagy, he American Dust Bowl, the 'Green Revolution,' GM Foods, and etc. (Food Inc. The Man Who Tried to Feed the World, Just Eat It, King Corn, Big River, and more). Writers and researchers may include: Michael Pollan, Jared Diamond, George Monbiot, Vandana Shiva, NOAA/NASA, New York Times.
Students will be expected to keep up with weekly readings and viewings, out-of-class short answer quizzes, in-class exercises, as well as small research projects + in-class presentations on food sustainability topics of their choice.

Class Number

2383

Credits

3

Description

The Graduate Projects course allows students to focus in private sessions on the development of their work and research from their home studio or mobile platforms. The continued development of ideas and approaches initiated during the summer Graduate Studio Seminar will be supported through in-person and online conversation with SAIC Program Mentors. These liaisons are intended to support the off-campus development of work while also providing personal connections to SAIC's vast global network of distinguished alumni. Open to Low Residency MFA students only.

Class Number

2109

Credits

3