This insightful article is featured in our Fine Arts & Exhibits special section, exploring how creative expression can offer inspiration during challenging times.
For Debbie Clarke Moderow, a pivotal moment arrived during the grueling 1,100-mile Iditarod sled dog race across Alaska’s icy heartland.
Her hands were raw, her feet numb, and her loyal dogs, exhausted. Moving to Alaska in 1979 with dreams of conquering mountains, she instead found love, built a family with two children and twenty huskies, all eager for her cry of “Ready, let’s go!” By 2005, at 49, as her team finally crossed the Nome finish line after two previous tries, Moderow realized a new chapter awaited her.
The Museum of the North in Fairbanks, Alaska, a striking white contemporary building, is currently hosting the “Threshold 32°F” exhibition through November 16.
“I always wanted to be a writer,” Moderow shared on a surprisingly warm August day in Fairbanks. “I had no idea how challenging it would prove to be.”
“It’s a continuous narrative of change,” explained Debbie Clarke Moderow, regarding the “Threshold 32°F” project.
Two decades after earning her master’s and publishing a memoir, Moderow has embarked on an even greater challenge: confronting climate change through writing, at a time when many remain skeptical. She now stands as a poet, collaborating with an artist and an ecologist on a traveling exhibit titled “Threshold 32°F.”
This exhibit, named “Threshold 32°F” after water’s freezing point, chronicles the lives of northern flora and fauna across an entire season. It features ten intricately linked oil paintings, each accompanied by evocative poems and illuminating scientific notes.
“It’s a continuous narrative of change,” Moderow elaborated during a tour of the exhibit, currently housed at the Museum of the North in Fairbanks. Juxtaposing imagery of ice and trees with crucial data on methane and bark beetles, she emphasized, “It both tells a compelling story and aims to educate.”
This collaborative effort, spearheaded by Moderow; Klara Maisch, an accomplished backcountry guide and painter; and Rebecca Hewitt, an assistant professor of environmental studies at Amherst College, is slated to tour. It will visit the Patricia Valian Reser Center for the Creative Arts at Oregon State University from January 5 to February 7, and Michigan State University’s SCENE Metrospace in fall 2026, from November 5 to December 13.
Rebecca Hewitt, an assistant professor of environmental studies at Amherst College, is seen here amidst Alaskan foliage, where she conducts crucial field work.
Art is increasingly becoming a vital medium for addressing climate change, from depicting the stark reality of wildfires in Los Angeles to Olafur Eliasson’s impactful iceberg installations that offer a palpable representation of global warming.
This particular project aims to achieve the same goal, compelling viewers to understand that the thawing of permafrost in distant lands ultimately affects us all.
The exhibit transports visitors deep into Alaska’s vast boreal forest, a sprawling belt of trees that constitutes one-third of the world’s total forest area. Each painting is thoughtfully paired with a poem and detailed field notes, enabling viewers to visually, emotionally, and intellectually grasp the profound effects of a warming climate. The narrative unfolds chronologically, starting in the autumn.
The initial artwork in the series depicts a warm September day, highlighting a white-backed bumblebee—a vital pollinator for blueberries and willows—as it prepares for hibernation. The exhibit starkly illustrates that a lack of sustained freezing temperatures leads to the demise of these crucial bees, and consequently, countless other plants and animals dependent on them.
These pieces delve into themes of time, hidden subterranean ecosystems, and the delicate balance of life sustained by sun, snow, and fire. When this balance is disrupted, the consequences ripple globally. The collaborators’ overarching hope is to enlighten audiences who may not yet comprehend how events in Alaska profoundly influence weather patterns across the entire nation.
“Call it what you will, it’s happening. And it’s happening to all of us,” Moderow asserted, drawing attention to the unprecedented storms and fires increasingly linked to Arctic shifts.
This entire initiative is brought to life by In a Time of Change, a collaborative arts-humanities-science program dedicated to Alaskan environmental shifts, proudly supported by the National Science Foundation.
“With each painting, we aimed to evoke specific emotions—hope, uncertainty, fear, comfort,” explained 36-year-old Maisch, who often treks to glaciers to capture their essence on canvas, sometimes working on shifting ice for weeks in winter. “My desire is for people unfamiliar with the boreal forest to leave feeling a sense of curiosity.”
Moderow observed that while “Most poetry requires a lot of effort on the part of the reader,” their exhibit aims for the opposite, making its message readily accessible.
“It’s also a fresh perspective for both us and our audience,” added 43-year-old Hewitt, whose expertise lies in plant-microbe interactions.
The warming of soil and the thawing of permafrost release millennia of stored carbon into the atmosphere, directly contributing to rising temperatures in Alaska and worldwide.
“The forest is currently undergoing a significant transition,” Moderow stated, noting its profound difference from her first arrival in 1979.
Notably, there’s less snow, which has even led to rerouting the Iditarod race, and reduced groundwater once it melts. This scarcity weakens trees, making them susceptible to bark beetle infestations and transforming them into potent fuel for wildfires.
Hewitt also pondered the impact of ancient microbes, currently trapped in permafrost, as they are released into these changing cycles.
A major concern is the accelerating feedback loop: the thawing permafrost releases methane, a greenhouse gas 25 times more potent than carbon, further exacerbating global warming.
“The hope,” Moderow expressed, “is that someone in the middle of the country will view this crisis with a new perspective.”
The “Threshold 32°F” project originated in late 2021 when Moderow and Maisch connected virtually. They were part of a group of artists and researchers commissioned to share stories about the boreal forest through the In a Time of Change program.
Two images from the exhibition: one shows a wide view of the “Threshold 32°F” exhibit at the Museum of the North, highlighting its role as a collaborative arts-humanities-science program focusing on environmental change in Alaska. The other is a close-up of the field notes and artifacts on display, underscoring how the show portrays the lives of northern plants and animals across a full season, named for water’s freezing temperature.
Living in Alaska, the two quickly formed a strong bond. Their collaboration thrived through constant phone and email exchanges, with Moderow weaving narratives of the forest and Maisch responding with interpretive sketches.
Their first in-person meeting saw them skiing across a pristine March landscape, tracking the elusive path of an ermine.
Later, Hewitt, despite residing in Massachusetts, joined the team to integrate a scientific research dimension, given her ongoing field work in Alaska. The expanded concept was then presented to Mary Beth Leigh, a unique individual with a background as a dancer who later became a microbiologist.
Leigh, currently an environmental microbiology professor at the University of Alaska Fairbanks, directs In a Time of Change. She co-founded the program in 2007 specifically to foster and support exhibitions like “Threshold 32°F.”
However, securing government support for climate initiatives is increasingly difficult. Washington has dismantled over 100 environmental regulations and policies, while federal agencies have challenged and even retracted established scientific findings. Furthermore, the National Science Foundation has cut $1.4 billion in grants, impacting programs like In a Time of Change, which receives approximately $1.3 million in funding from the foundation.
From an office brimming with papers and potted plants, Leigh, with her eclectic background in modern dance and cello performances (including with the iconic Flaming Lips), candidly admitted that “no one knows what’s next” for such vital climate-focused work.
Mary Beth Leigh, a former dancer turned scientist, is shown here in a natural setting. She now teaches environmental microbiology at the University of Alaska Fairbanks and directs the “In a Time of Change” program.
With each artist receiving a modest $1,000 stipend and the Threshold project securing approximately $10,000 for fabrication and travel, this initiative truly embodies a labor of love.
Leigh hopes that by eliciting an emotional response, the program will not only endure but also inspire individuals to take meaningful action.
Back at the museum, the team stands firm in their belief that this story—both of their artistic endeavor and the evolving climate—is far from complete. Moderow added that by showcasing the triumph of various species, “we’re also striving to highlight themes of resilience and hope.”
“It’s a celebration of both the forest and its inhabitants,” Maisch concluded, expressing her deep appreciation for living amidst birch trees and wildlife. “This forest is our home, and I cannot imagine living anywhere else. We truly love this place.”