Art+Fog Collective: Harvesting Water from the Sky
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California fog is not just a cooling veil over the coastline—it is a vital force that sustains life, supports ecosystems, and fosters a connection between humans and the natural world. At UC Santa Cruz, Faculty Peter Weiss-Penzias and Jennifer Parker collaborate with visiting artist Anja Ulfeldt as the Art+Fog Collective to inspire people to think about fog and share how creative ideas can lead to smart solutions for the future.
Gathering Cloud
Inspired by the ethereal shapes of clouds, Anja Ulfeldt, UCSC OpenLab visiting Artist-in-Residence, has created Gathering Cloud, a groundbreaking sculpture installed at the Seymour Marine Discovery Center. This innovative work demonstrates how fog can be transformed into a vital water source. By collecting moisture from the air, the sculpture sustains a vibrant green space for plants, animals, and birds during the dry summer months.
More than just a sculpture, Gathering Cloud catalyzes climate knowledge, fostering societal awareness about sustainable solutions. It’s part of a growing movement to build a cultural shift toward environmental resilience by bridging art and ecology for public engagement.
Fog collection, a centuries-old practice, has seen applications from the Canary Islands to Chile's Atacama Desert. At UC Santa Cruz, the Art+Fog collective—featuring scientist Peter Weiss-Penzias, Art Professor Jennifer Parker, and Ulfeldt—is leading the charge in exploring creative approaches to climate challenges.
Supported by the OpenLab Collaborative Research Center, where Ulfeldt is an artist-in-residence, along with the Center for Coastal Climate and Resilience and the Climate Action Solutions Program, Gathering Cloud inspires innovative thinking and action, blending history, science, and artistic imagination to create a sustainable future.
When it comes to FOG
UC Santa Cruz collaborates across the Arts & Sciences to explore Climate Action and Mitigation Techniques.
