'High Tide' from the Art x Climate Gallery

Released in 2023, the Fifth National Climate Assessment (NCA5) includes an Art × Climate Gallery. The gallery collection features the work of 92 artists, selected from more than 800 submissions. This art may only be reproduced or re-used in connection with the Fifth National Climate Assessment. Any other use must be negotiated with the author. 

Accelerating sea level rise and changing storm patterns will increase hazards along U.S. coasts, the NCA5 reports. Over 2020–2050, sea levels along contiguous U.S. coasts are predicted to rise roughly 11 inches (28 centimeters). That’s as much as the observed rise over the last century.

Sea level rise boosts the frequency and severity of high tide flooding. Combined with extreme storms, high tide floods produce a cascade of negative effects: interruptions to electrical supply and teleconnections, losses of ecosystem services, saltwater intrusion into groundwater sources, erosion, landslides, damage to roads and infrastructure, compromised emergency services, and population displacement.

This digital image shows an art installation from 2016 by Carolina Aragon. This is Aragon’s statement:

High Tide was a temporary art installation inspired by Boston’s original marsh landscape to visualize projected flooding due to sea level rise. The installation represented future flood levels as a marsh of color-changing circles moving around vertical rods. High Tide is part of a series of temporary installations designed to engage the public with the science of climate change through unexpected moments of wonder. Placed in public spaces, the artworks provide site-specific information about flooding impacts through non-threatening embodied experiences.