About Collins & Goto Studio
When we are asked about what we do and why we do it, we seek out opportunities that challenge our subjective experience and understanding of the world around us. In our pursuit of experience informed by readings and conversations we discover/re discover how we understand people, places, and things; the work can be described as social – ecological practice. We seek out new experience and understanding that challenges and changes meaning. What we care about and value changes over time, as we practice a sort of being in a place. Or being in amongst other beings; inter relationships with living entities, like boglands. Artwork emerges as a critical, creative reflection upon experiences that are unique and true.
Tim Collins and Reiko Goto are distinguished artists whose collaborative work investigates the intersection of art, ecology, and the public realm. Based in Glasgow, Scotland, their art practice centers on fostering empathic relationships with living systems and revealing the often unseen ways in which human culture and the natural world are interconnected. Their projects often involve deep mapping, a method of uncovering the ecological and cultural layers of a place. Their current projects explore the idea of “Cultural Decoys,” which challenge traditional distinctions between nature and human-made objects. By creating these decoys, Collins and Goto prompt audiences to reconsider the meaning and value of the artifacts, ecosystems, and urban spaces that surround us.
Challenging conventional boundaries, the “Cultural Decoy” embodies an idea with a physical form that connects to broader concepts from different historical or spatial contexts. Through these decoys, Collins & Goto investigate the interplay of nature and culture in landscapes and waterscapes, prompting audiences to reconsider the meaning and value we ascribe to the spaces and objects around us.
Their work, deeply rooted in empathy and dialogue, extends beyond traditional artistic representations. It is a form of “social – ecological practice,” as described in source , that seeks out new experiences and understandings. They employ “sensors, technology, and sound to reveal the life signs” of living systems, such as trees and peat bogs, making these systems more tangible and knowable to human perception.
Collins & Goto’s notable projects, including the Lough Boora Sculpture Park deep mapping project and the Future Forest in Scotland initiative , demonstrate their commitment to long-term engagement with specific environments. They approach their work through “deep mapping” and “deep dialogue,” methodologies that uncover the hidden layers of a place and foster collaborative exploration. By engaging in “arts-led dialogue” and “research-informed public practice,” Collins & Goto create opportunities for audiences to connect with ecological systems, cultural histories, and ultimately, their own place within the natural world.
Artistic Philosophy
Collins & Goto Studio’s artworking is deeply rooted in a critical engagement with the current environmental crisis. The following text articulates our understanding of art’s role in responding to this unprecedented challenge and outlines the key concepts that guide our practice.
Key Areas of Focus:
- ENVIRONMENTAL ARTWORKING:
Art can be recognized through its similarity to works considered as art in terms of form, content, or concept, or through its unique engagement with meaning and value beyond the practical. Art is a constantly evolving field of human inquiry that resists any finite definition and constantly pushes the boundaries of what is considered art. Artists working in environmental conditions often have a different perspective on the world, reinterpreting history and imagining new futures.- The PRECIPICE / CLIMATE
The precipice refers to the point where the narratives of a safe and stable environment and unlimited growth through science and industry are being challenged by the global environmental crisis, which cannot be resolved through the technical solutions of modernism. The artist is interested in exploring what this cliff edge represents as a social-ecological construct and how art will change as we move closer to it. The theories and practices of modernism and its postmodern variations are becoming increasingly unstable as the edge of the plateau begins to crumble. Possible responses to this situation include an integration of aesthetics and epistemology (following Cazeaux, 2017) and new forms of artworking that exist in the world alongside other disciplines without relying on their problem-solving frameworks (following Roberts, 2017). Artworking encompasses the inquiry, process, method, and outcome of artistic creation and cannot be defined by one overarching idea that applies to all forms of artworking.
Through our artworking, we aim to foster a deeper understanding of the complex interrelationships between humans and the natural world. We believe that art has the capacity to inspire empathy, provoke critical reflection, and ultimately, contribute to the creation of a more just and sustainable future.
Tim Collins PhD, MFA, BFA
Timothy M Collins is an artist, author, and planner who specializes in interdisciplinary projects that explore the intersection of landscape, science, culture, and public space. As a principal in the Collins & Goto Studio in Glasgow, Scotland, Tim’s work focuses on the social and cultural relationships to our changing environment.
His research explores the impact of art on our evolving ethical and aesthetic values, examining the relationship between art, science, philosophy, experience, and imagination to understand the evolving meaning of nature. Tim’s practice involves socially engaged art practices that are informed by democratic and agonistic discourse in the context of the environment, which he calls socially and environmentally engaged research (SEER).
Collaboration is central to Tim’s approach. He has collaborated with musicians, planners, scientists, technologists, historians, and philosophers over the years to produce artworks, videos, exhibitions, seminars, workshops, and publications. He has worked on projects that address issues related to rural landscapes and forestry, including the cultural meaning of conservation boglands and cutaway peatlands in Ireland and deep mapping a Caledonian Pine Forest in Scotland.
Tim’s work has been presented globally. Notable projects include PLEIN AIR, a sculptural instrument that reveals a sonic elucidation of photosynthesis, transpiration, and carbon exchange; and HAKOTO: Flow, a research project focused on Greenhouse Gas Removal and its relationship to the life signs of peatlands.
Currently, Tim serves as a Distinguished Research Fellow at the Studio for Creative Inquiry, Carnegie Mellon University; a visiting research fellow at Bath Spa University; and an international associate of the RMIT Arts and Ecologies Research Network (AEGIS) in Melbourne, Australia. He also sits on the board of Glasgow Sculpture Studios and is an active member of several organizations, including the Landscape Research Group, a Local Nature Reserve Committee, and the Native Woodland Discussion Group.
Tim Collins 2024 CV (pdf)
PhD Thesis:
Art, Ecology, and Planning
Strategic Concepts and Creativity within the Post Industrial Public Realm
(pdf)
This thesis explores the potential impact of art on ecology and planning in public spaces. Through a detailed examination of historical and contemporary ideas in public art practice, the author evaluates the effectiveness of art as a tool for shifting perceptions and re-framing concepts in the context of environmental conservation and restoration. It is a comprehensive analysis of the relationship between art, ecology, and planning in public spaces, with a focus on the potential impact of cultural agency in driving positive change.
Reiko Goto PhD, MFA, BFA
Reiko Goto Collins is an accomplished environmental artist who has dedicated over three decades to developing empathic relationships with living creatures through her art. Her practice explores the intersection of living things and the environment, informed by the philosophical ideas of Edith Stein and Charles Sanders Peirce.
Central to Reiko’s work is the concept of empathy, which she understands as an imaginative exchange between two living things. She examines how empathy can bridge the gap between human perception and the “otherness” of the natural world, inspiring new forms of understanding and responsibility.
Reiko’s artistic inquiries often focus on the physiological processes of living organisms. She has created sculptural instruments, such as PLEIN AIR, that translate the unseen processes of trees into sound, revealing the interconnectedness of human and natural systems. Her current research project, HAKOTO: Flow, focuses on Greenhouse Gas Removal and its relationship to the life signs of peatlands.
Reiko is particularly interested in the relationship between native flora and fauna, invasive species, and other small creatures. Her work has involved collaborations with a diverse range of individuals and entities, including a native-breed horse, philosophers of ethics and aesthetics, and researchers who study animals as sentient beings. These collaborations allow her to deepen her understanding of interspecies relationships and to bring new perspectives to her art.
Reiko is a principal in the Collins + Goto Studio in Glasgow, Scotland, where she works collaboratively with Tim Collins. She is also a Distinguished Research Fellow at the Studio for Creative Inquiry at Carnegie Mellon University; a visiting research fellow at Bath Spa University; and an international associate of the RMIT Arts and Ecologies Research Network in Melbourne, Australia. In addition, she serves as a board member of the Hamiltonhill Claypits Local Nature Reserve.
Reiko Goto 2024 CV (pdf)
PhD Thesis:
Ecology and Environmental Art in Public Place:
Talking Tree: Won’t you take a minute and listen to the plight of nature?
(pdf)