Pop-Up Exhibition by Brianna Harrington
In the Community Hallway, November 9, 2024-January 4, 2025

In this exhibit, Brianna Harrington uses paintings made with sand and soil collected from Minnesota and beyond to explore the impact our environment has on our health and well-being.

In her own words, "These paintings, using sand and soil collected from Minnesota and beyond, are a visual reflection of the degrading vibrancy of our soil’s health and a call for our part in environmental advocacy.

Ecoacoustics, which studies soundscapes within ecosystems, offers insights into soil health by monitoring the presence and activity of soil-dwelling organisms. Healthy soils feature rich, diverse soundscapes filled with clicks, pops, and crackles generated by invertebrates like worms and beetles moving through the soil. This acoustic diversity is much reduced in degraded soils, which lack active, life-supporting microbial communities essential for soil productivity and ecosystem balance.
From a health perspective, healthy soils are vital for human well-being. They play crucial roles in supporting food security, filtering contaminants, and contributing to climate resilience. Microbes within these soils influence the nutrient density of crops, which directly impacts human health by providing higher-quality nutrients in our food supply. Additionally, soil microbiomes are linked to the human microbiome, impacting immunity and gut health in ways that researchers are just beginning to explore."