Liquid Spine: Film, Dance, and Dialogue

Presented in conjunction with the exhibition New Ecologies: May Babcock (on view November 20, 2026–April 18, 2027), this special evening program brings together film, contemporary dance, and conversation to explore how artists respond to changing landscapes and emerging ecological systems.

Liquid Spine is a global dance film and performance series that uses movement, site, and community engagement to unearth the environmental needs of water systems around the world. Created in site-sensitive locations, the series highlights region-specific ecological concerns while affirming the interdependence of human and nonhuman life.

The program features screenings of two short films from the Liquid Spine series—Augusta and Great Marsh. Liquid Spine: Augusta examines the environmental and public health challenges facing Sicily’s “Black Triangle,” a region shaped by seaside industry. Liquid Spine: Great Marsh centers on the Great Marsh as a vital stopover for migratory birds, while also affirming the fundamental need for safe spaces and refuge for all living beings navigating uncertain landscapes.

These films resonate closely with May Babcock’s eco-centric practice, which transforms locally sourced grasses, sediment, and fibers into sculptural forms that reflect new, adaptive ecologies emerging from distressed environments. Both the exhibition and the Liquid Spine project consider how novel relationships—between bodies, materials, and ecosystems—arise in response to environmental disruption.

The evening will include a live solo dance performance by Lindsey Zuccaro, principal dancer featured in Liquid Spine: Great Marsh, performing choreography drawn from the film and the live-staged work Nowhere to Land / Finding Refuge, set to composer Robert J. Bradshaw’s score On the River: Jones Creek Salt Marsh. The performance activates the body as both subject and medium within these landscapes.

The program will also feature an “Art as Activism” talk by Liquid Spine director Katie Pustizzi, who will discuss her creative process and approach to site-sensitive dance as a form of artistic activism. The evening will conclude with a panel discussion (participants to be announced) and audience Q&A.

Together, the exhibition and program invite audiences to consider how movement—of bodies, materials, and ecosystems—can reveal new relationships to place and foster deeper environmental awareness.