Art as Activism: “Soon Is Now”

As climate change accelerates around the globe, the Hudson Valley is beginning to feel its effects. According to the Hudson River Maritime Museum, the temperature in the Hudson Valley has risen by 3.9°F in the past 100 years, and the average winter temperature has increased by 4°F. Over the next century, the Hudson River is expected to rise over six feet, having catastrophic effects on nearby homes.

Artists have come together to protect their communities with “Soon Is Now,” a free, family-friendly, interactive festival at Scenic Hudson’s Long Dock Park in Beacon bringing awareness to climate change.

“Soon Is Now” was founded by Beacon-based artist, photographer, and documentary filmmaker, Eve Morgenstern. “What’s cool about it is you’re watching a performance, but you’re also taking in the nature all around you,” she says.

“Soon Is Now,” founded in 2021, sprouted from Morgenstern’s idea to create an ecological art project. Then she discovered Climate Change Theatre Action, a project that commissions playwrights to create work dedicated to climate change. During the first “Soon Is Now,” local actors read some of these plays and Morgenstern and her co-producers Connie Hall and Brian Mendes curated an array of artist’s works.

At “Soon Is Now,” on October 5, dozens of artists will take audiences through a climate experience along the Hudson. The festival runs from 1 to 4:30pm and guests can sign up for a walking tour through the park. The tours, starting at 2, 2:30, and 3pm, stop at each of the performing art pieces including original works of poetry, dance, music, and sculpture. Scenic Hudson’s River Center will host an art exhibition featuring the work of a dozen artists and a live performance by Elizabeth Castagna. Environmental organizations Riverkeeper and Beacon Climate Action Now will be tabling in the barn. The festival's rain date is October 6.

Morgenstern’s festival isn’t solely an arts festival, it’s also an opportunity for the community to learn about the environment around them. At 1 and 2pm Oglala Lakota herbalist, Amy White Eyes, will lead a mugwort plant walk and an interactive workshop. Artist and educator T. Charnan Lewis will teach a climate-focused art workshop.

“We all know art has an important role to play in inspiring climate awareness and activism and we need these experiences of coming together in community to experience art and live performance to feed our imaginations on how to solve this crisis,” says Morgenstern. “What better place to do it than in a park that has been designed to capture and release the flood waters of the Hudson River, predicted to rise six feet or more by the end of this century?”