Arts and Humanities Commons^™

Animating Plastics: Shinto And Environmentalism In Sayaka Ganz’S Reclaimed Creations, Erin Inouye

Oswald Research and Creativity Competition

Sculpture artist Sayaka Ganz uses found plastic objects to create intricate recreations of nature. From the pair of horses in Emergence II to the monumental whale Nanami, Ganz’s work breathes new life into discarded plastic materials that would otherwise lay dormant in landfills and trash cans. Ganz herself attributes her attraction to working with alternative sculptural materials to the emphasis on Shinto animist beliefs engrained in her throughout her upbringing.

This presentation will explore the ways in which Sayaka Ganz’s Reclaimed Creations series demonstrate Aike P. Rots’s theory of the Shinto Environmentalist Paradigm which asserts that the “animistic” beliefs …

Almost Heaven: Religious Arguments In Appalachian Extractive Fiction, Darby Lane Campbell

Theses and Dissertations--English

Appalachia is a national sacrifice zone that hosts extractive industries directly responsible for many social problems in the region, however, many attribute these issues to the moral failings of Appalachians themselves. Activism in the area is heavily focused on opposing both extraction and the negative perceptions which contribute to its domination. One way this activism is conducted is through extractive fiction—novels which expose the destruction caused by extractive industries. Appalachian extractive fiction utilizes religion and spirituality to argue against extraction. This research examines how fiction can be an effective mode of activism and how the use of Christian arguments in …