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All Art is Ecological
In twenty short books, Penguin brings you the classics of the environmental movement.Provocative and playful, All Art is Ecological explores the strangeness of living in an age of mass extinction, and shows us that emotions and experience are the basis for a deep philosophical engagement with ecology.Over the past 75 years, a new canon has emerged. As life on Earth has become irrevocably altered by humans, visionary thinkers around the world have raised their voices to defend the planet, and affirm our place at the heart of its restoration. Their words have endured through the decades, becoming the classics of a movement. Together, these books show the richness of environmental thought, and point the way to a fairer, saner, greener world.
105 pages, Paperback
Published August 26, 2021
105 people are currently reading
1416 people want to read
About the author
Timothy Morton
82 books368 followersTimothy Bloxam Morton is Rita Shea Guffey Chair in English at Rice University. They are the author of Dark Ecology: For a Logic of Future Coexistence; Nothing: Three Inquiries in Buddhism (with Marcus Boon and Eric Cazdyn); Hyperobjects: Philosophy and Ecology after the End of the World; and other books.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 137 reviews
January 14, 2022
Honestly not sure what half of this was about??? A lot of waffling and jibbering and very hard to follow. Longest 104 pages of my life.
July 5, 2022
I found it quite hard to finish, Personally, I found it much harder to finish this booklet then, say, Mark Fisher or Franco Berardi (or even Sigmind Freud). I don't vibe with this author at all...even though I am interested in the topic.
There were a few original thoughts or ideas in-between, like the concept of hyperobejcts for example, or that we are beyond listing factoids about ecological collapse.
Mostly though, I had the impression that Morton is an edgelord. And that he fancies himself a bit too much.(And of course he has to drop that he knows Björk, personally.)
Generally, this whole text seems to be a justification for privileged Boomers ( and yes, Morton has to mention that he is Gen X). It's mental gymnastics to justify why "not caring is caring".
Many times I noted "word salad" or "male logic" in the margins cause it didnt make sense, he didnt argue in anyway clearly or precisely, and he didnt follow through with this thoughts. Like, you criticize mind/body duality but at the same time, call yourself nonbinary? Make it make sense.
And he looves his silly little word creations like truthiness; Yodaness... I mean, good for you mate, but calm down.
I also wondered what kind of art he was talking about when he writes about..many eyes..looking at you..challenging you..merging with you. (I am paraphrasing here)..when after a while, I realized he porobably just has one of these fractal/psychedelic posters at home that become super trippy when your high. That's the art he is talking about, that and "My bloody Valentine".
There were a few original thoughts or ideas in-between, like the concept of hyperobejcts for example, or that we are beyond listing factoids about ecological collapse.
Mostly though, I had the impression that Morton is an edgelord. And that he fancies himself a bit too much.(And of course he has to drop that he knows Björk, personally.)
Generally, this whole text seems to be a justification for privileged Boomers ( and yes, Morton has to mention that he is Gen X). It's mental gymnastics to justify why "not caring is caring".
Many times I noted "word salad" or "male logic" in the margins cause it didnt make sense, he didnt argue in anyway clearly or precisely, and he didnt follow through with this thoughts. Like, you criticize mind/body duality but at the same time, call yourself nonbinary? Make it make sense.
And he looves his silly little word creations like truthiness; Yodaness... I mean, good for you mate, but calm down.
I also wondered what kind of art he was talking about when he writes about..many eyes..looking at you..challenging you..merging with you. (I am paraphrasing here)..when after a while, I realized he porobably just has one of these fractal/psychedelic posters at home that become super trippy when your high. That's the art he is talking about, that and "My bloody Valentine".
April 18, 2022
No. 3 in Penguin’s Green Ideas series. Pseudo philosophical garbage.
December 21, 2021
Something a little different in thinking about climate change, the climate crisis, the anthropocene, ... a philosophical and popular music (and not just Talking Heads ... https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5IsSp... ) and ... yes, ... art-based ... mash-up of ideas and rubrics and constructs and tools for understanding (nah, it's inexplicable) and discussing how we think and talk about and address (or fail to address) the elephant in the room.
Reviewer's Quirky Observation/Distraction:The author, a professor at Rice University (in Houston), specializes in broad range of topics, from Ecological Cultural and Literary Criticism, Environmental Humanities, Gender & Sexuality, Literary Theory, and Animal Studies to Posthumanism, and more.... Alas, he arrived at Rice long after I'd graduated, but it did remind me that, despite multiple tries, I never found inspiration in the Rice's Philosophy Department (although, again, as noted above, Morton doesn't self-style as a philosopher, even if philosophy and philosophers animate and dominate much of this book).
This pocket/bite-sized essay (originally published in 2018) is volume 3 in the Penguin Green Ideas collection, which, apparently, is not available for sale (in the slipcase collection) in the U.S. (but it's not that difficult to order it from a UK supplier).
Reviewer's Quirky Observation/Distraction:The author, a professor at Rice University (in Houston), specializes in broad range of topics, from Ecological Cultural and Literary Criticism, Environmental Humanities, Gender & Sexuality, Literary Theory, and Animal Studies to Posthumanism, and more.... Alas, he arrived at Rice long after I'd graduated, but it did remind me that, despite multiple tries, I never found inspiration in the Rice's Philosophy Department (although, again, as noted above, Morton doesn't self-style as a philosopher, even if philosophy and philosophers animate and dominate much of this book).
This pocket/bite-sized essay (originally published in 2018) is volume 3 in the Penguin Green Ideas collection, which, apparently, is not available for sale (in the slipcase collection) in the U.S. (but it's not that difficult to order it from a UK supplier).
June 17, 2022
I unfortunately couldn’t finish this. This was just a philosophical ego trip guised as a critique on the state of our current ecological warfare. The first half was bloated with self indulgent digressions and was frankly unenjoyable.
October 17, 2021
Some parts of this were really interesting and had some great ideas/fun facts about things that tied in nicely. However, I felt like the main points got lost in a lot of the text, which seemed unnecessary and didn't really flow to form coherent points. There was a lot of waffle in between and at parts I was confused at what the author wanted to really say/if they were actually saying anything? Confusing with some good bits.
abandoned
April 14, 2022I failed to find any interesting insights even after getting halfway through the book, so I'm abandoning this one for now.
January 18, 2023
Although a very short book, it still felt too long. Honestly had no idea what the point of this book was and finished it feeling more confused than when I started.
August 24, 2024
Some interesting points about the accessibility of environmentalism and ambiguity of art, but overall this read as far too pretentious for me. Also, if you are going to use the work of a Nazi as a key part of your essay, there needs to be a little bit more than a "don't worry about that, we can move past it" disclaimer.
November 3, 2021
kind of crazy kind of nice ???
July 1, 2023
MUST READ if you ARE interested in philosophy, ecology, politics of ecology, theory of Art, and deconstruction of anthropocentrism, and if you ARE NOT.
March 28, 2025
3.5
A very interesting read. New for me, for sure.
The most memorable aspect of this book was the idea of beauty - how we perceive beauty and art. I was raised in a family full of artists and noticers. My parents are noticers, but not ones who can grasp the ungraspability of the beauty in art. I was like this, too, before I took art history classes and became immersed while studying in the U.K. I've realized that I am unlike my parents in this way. They are artists in other, to them, more "practical" ways. I have more appreciation for the abstract. Timothy Morton helped me understand this in reading this book.
Some quotes from the book I've thought a lot about:
"... the kind of futurality a piece of artwork opens up is unconditional: in other words, it doesn't have a rate at which it decays to nothing. You don't ever exhaust the meaning of a poem or a painting or a piece of music ... the artwork is a sort of gate through which you can glimpse the unconditioned futurality that is a possibility condition for predictable futures. ... What would it look like if we allowed more things to have some kind of power over us?"
"In the beauty experience, there is some kind of mind-meld-like thing that takes place, where I can't tell whether it's me or the artwork that is causing the beauty experience: if I try to reduce it to the artwork or me, I pretty much ruin it."
I think Morton overall brings up some interesting points. At times, maybe a bit of a sensationalist view of making art, weakening their stance that our own ecological interactions create lasting impacts. But this may perpetuate the problem at hand...
A very interesting read. New for me, for sure.
The most memorable aspect of this book was the idea of beauty - how we perceive beauty and art. I was raised in a family full of artists and noticers. My parents are noticers, but not ones who can grasp the ungraspability of the beauty in art. I was like this, too, before I took art history classes and became immersed while studying in the U.K. I've realized that I am unlike my parents in this way. They are artists in other, to them, more "practical" ways. I have more appreciation for the abstract. Timothy Morton helped me understand this in reading this book.
Some quotes from the book I've thought a lot about:
"... the kind of futurality a piece of artwork opens up is unconditional: in other words, it doesn't have a rate at which it decays to nothing. You don't ever exhaust the meaning of a poem or a painting or a piece of music ... the artwork is a sort of gate through which you can glimpse the unconditioned futurality that is a possibility condition for predictable futures. ... What would it look like if we allowed more things to have some kind of power over us?"
"In the beauty experience, there is some kind of mind-meld-like thing that takes place, where I can't tell whether it's me or the artwork that is causing the beauty experience: if I try to reduce it to the artwork or me, I pretty much ruin it."
I think Morton overall brings up some interesting points. At times, maybe a bit of a sensationalist view of making art, weakening their stance that our own ecological interactions create lasting impacts. But this may perpetuate the problem at hand...
May 31, 2025
2.5 maybe? There were some interesting ideas – truthiness, allowing the hypnotic effect of art – but the writing was too convoluted. This could have been distilled and it would have been so much clearer. The humorous turns of phrase, fun references, and absurd comparisons feel wasted if the overall effect does not come through. The parts may be greater than the whole, or not, but an understanding of the whole is undeniably important in appreciating the parts.
November 12, 2021
And You May Find Yourself Living in an Age of Mass Extinction…. So begins Timothy Morton’s latest book, All Art is Ecological.
Published as part of Penguin’s new Green Ideas Series, this slim paperback sits alongside nineteen other works of environmental writing. From farmers and biologists to artists and philosophers, spanning decades, the books offer a wide range of perspectives, which Chloe Currens, the editor of the series, says serves to present an evolving ecosystem of environmental writing.
Along with classics like Masanobu Fukuoka’s The Dragonfly Will Be the Messiah and Rachel Carson’s The Silent Spring; there is the work of many contemporary thinkers, such as Greta Thunberg’s No One is Too Small to Make a Difference, Amitav Ghosh’s Uncanny and Improbable Events, and George Monbiot’s This can’t be happening.
I wanted to read them all—but I started with Timothy Morton, who has been called “the philosopher prophet of the Anthropocene.” A big fan of his writing, I think Timothy Morton is pretty much the most exciting thinker alive. I was, therefore, not surprised to find myself challenged from the very first sentence.
What does this mean exactly: You MIGHT find yourself living in an age of mass extinction?
Why the subjunctive?
And what do you think about his choice of “age of mass extinction” over climate change and global warming?
Morton says that climate change is too weak, and so he prefers global warming– since it is focused on the actual effect of climate change. But he then suggests that the ultimate result is the mass extinction event that we are, in fact, experiencing.
That a massive animal and plant extinction is now unfolding is irrefutable, but what is so crucial about this sixth such event is that the asteroid causing the die-off is us.
We could do something.
But then, why the subjunctive? Shouldn’t the opening sentence of his book be something more like, “You ARE living through an age of mass extinction?”
His argument goes something like this: By turning the issue into a definitive yes or no (verbally voting: I believe or I don’t believe), we lose the actual experience of being in the uncanny. In the middle of a catastrophe.
What happened to all the flies? Were there always this many wildfires in Southern California?
Things look the same, but something is off…
It’s not unlike the experience of a car accident or a natural disaster. Time slows down and there is an undeniable feeling unreality.
Morton is concerned with the way we are talking about the issues and how the conversation is dominated by a type of person who is endlessly “concerned” –and worse takes to telling other people what they should be doing.
He says,
“Let’s think about the delivery mode of ecological advice– drive less, shop locally, save energy, all the usual “should” that we hear again and again. Either we are being preached to as individuals, being made to feel bad and encouraged to change our habits, so that maybe we will feel better, because we think others think of us differently –or we are being lectured at, made to feel powerless, because the thought of revolution or other kinds of political change are very inspiring, but also bring up thoughts of how they might be resisted or constrained: the powers that be are too great, revolutions are always co-opted.”
In Morton’s terms that means thinking along the lines of agricultural religion—Judaism, Christianity, Hinduism, and so on, thinking characterized by hierarchal views, utilizing the unambiguous language of good and bad, us and them.
But the sky is falling –and we cannot look away; not in denials, nor worse, in smug blame-gaming (just before we head out to load up at Costco or vent on carbon heavy social media). One of Morton’s interesting points is how global warming inspires in us a petrifying hypocrisy, lameness, and weakness. The topic of climate is too mind-bogglingly big and new. There are no “right” answers, and all conversations break down since any one approach will trivialize the problem and inevitably be wrong.
So what can we do?
Rest of this review up at 3 Quarks Daily
Published as part of Penguin’s new Green Ideas Series, this slim paperback sits alongside nineteen other works of environmental writing. From farmers and biologists to artists and philosophers, spanning decades, the books offer a wide range of perspectives, which Chloe Currens, the editor of the series, says serves to present an evolving ecosystem of environmental writing.
Along with classics like Masanobu Fukuoka’s The Dragonfly Will Be the Messiah and Rachel Carson’s The Silent Spring; there is the work of many contemporary thinkers, such as Greta Thunberg’s No One is Too Small to Make a Difference, Amitav Ghosh’s Uncanny and Improbable Events, and George Monbiot’s This can’t be happening.
I wanted to read them all—but I started with Timothy Morton, who has been called “the philosopher prophet of the Anthropocene.” A big fan of his writing, I think Timothy Morton is pretty much the most exciting thinker alive. I was, therefore, not surprised to find myself challenged from the very first sentence.
What does this mean exactly: You MIGHT find yourself living in an age of mass extinction?
Why the subjunctive?
And what do you think about his choice of “age of mass extinction” over climate change and global warming?
Morton says that climate change is too weak, and so he prefers global warming– since it is focused on the actual effect of climate change. But he then suggests that the ultimate result is the mass extinction event that we are, in fact, experiencing.
That a massive animal and plant extinction is now unfolding is irrefutable, but what is so crucial about this sixth such event is that the asteroid causing the die-off is us.
We could do something.
But then, why the subjunctive? Shouldn’t the opening sentence of his book be something more like, “You ARE living through an age of mass extinction?”
His argument goes something like this: By turning the issue into a definitive yes or no (verbally voting: I believe or I don’t believe), we lose the actual experience of being in the uncanny. In the middle of a catastrophe.
What happened to all the flies? Were there always this many wildfires in Southern California?
Things look the same, but something is off…
It’s not unlike the experience of a car accident or a natural disaster. Time slows down and there is an undeniable feeling unreality.
Morton is concerned with the way we are talking about the issues and how the conversation is dominated by a type of person who is endlessly “concerned” –and worse takes to telling other people what they should be doing.
He says,
“Let’s think about the delivery mode of ecological advice– drive less, shop locally, save energy, all the usual “should” that we hear again and again. Either we are being preached to as individuals, being made to feel bad and encouraged to change our habits, so that maybe we will feel better, because we think others think of us differently –or we are being lectured at, made to feel powerless, because the thought of revolution or other kinds of political change are very inspiring, but also bring up thoughts of how they might be resisted or constrained: the powers that be are too great, revolutions are always co-opted.”
In Morton’s terms that means thinking along the lines of agricultural religion—Judaism, Christianity, Hinduism, and so on, thinking characterized by hierarchal views, utilizing the unambiguous language of good and bad, us and them.
But the sky is falling –and we cannot look away; not in denials, nor worse, in smug blame-gaming (just before we head out to load up at Costco or vent on carbon heavy social media). One of Morton’s interesting points is how global warming inspires in us a petrifying hypocrisy, lameness, and weakness. The topic of climate is too mind-bogglingly big and new. There are no “right” answers, and all conversations break down since any one approach will trivialize the problem and inevitably be wrong.
So what can we do?
Rest of this review up at 3 Quarks Daily
December 21, 2021
Another quick read….hot on the heels of reading Jeff VanderMeer’s Borne books, with ants in pants, I awaited the arrival of this recent release to re-up my dosage: these are excerpts from his 2018 book “Being Ecological” which I highly recommend. The nice thing about “All Art…” is that is inexpensive and short, minimal commitment necessary and you can still feel so accomplished!: If you like the temperature when you jump in, stay in longer by grabbing a copy of the larger book. Given where my headspace has been with reading “Dead Astronauts” recently, this excerpt (from the excerpts) seems appropriate for it’s similar flavor profile:
.
“Per-ver-sion. En-vir-onment. These terms come from the verb *to veer*. To veer, to swerve towards: am I choosing to do it? Or am I being pulled? Free will is overrated. I do no make decisions outside the universe and then plunge in, like an Olympic diver. I am already in. I am like a mermaid, constantly pulled and pulling, pushed and pushing, flicked and flicking, turned and opened, moving with the current, pursing away with the force I can muster. An environment is not a neutral empty box, but an ocean filled with currents and surges. It environs. It veers around, making me giddy. An aesthetic wormhole, bending the terrestrial and ecological into the cosmological. The torsion of deep space, beaming into the cold water of this stream like bent light, the stream where I was caught by the fish I was catching a few pages ago.”
.
“Per-ver-sion. En-vir-onment. These terms come from the verb *to veer*. To veer, to swerve towards: am I choosing to do it? Or am I being pulled? Free will is overrated. I do no make decisions outside the universe and then plunge in, like an Olympic diver. I am already in. I am like a mermaid, constantly pulled and pulling, pushed and pushing, flicked and flicking, turned and opened, moving with the current, pursing away with the force I can muster. An environment is not a neutral empty box, but an ocean filled with currents and surges. It environs. It veers around, making me giddy. An aesthetic wormhole, bending the terrestrial and ecological into the cosmological. The torsion of deep space, beaming into the cold water of this stream like bent light, the stream where I was caught by the fish I was catching a few pages ago.”
February 22, 2022
Reflections and lessons learned:
“Everything emits time, not just humans. So when we talk about sustainability, what we’re talking about mostly is maintaining some kind of human-scaled temporality frame, and this is necessarily at the expense of those other beings, and it’s very likely we didn’t factor them in at all”
Given that I’d not previously enjoyed the fellow series titles that I’d read, I nearly returned this library loan without reading. I thought that I’d try one last attempt though and wow - such a clever interpretation and commentary on the philosophical side of the topic. One of the difficulties that I often find with ecology is the ego from some humans thinking that it can only be things that are actions from human hands and control. Not to say that we shouldn’t take responsibility for the choices that we make, and any resulting negative impact, but this takes that wider view of human vs non human sharing of the planet. Some properly jaw dropping concepts put across, and definitely an author that I’d be interested in. Any book to accurately and contextually reference Talking Heads on several pages is just genius - ceci n’est pas une pipe y’know
“Everything emits time, not just humans. So when we talk about sustainability, what we’re talking about mostly is maintaining some kind of human-scaled temporality frame, and this is necessarily at the expense of those other beings, and it’s very likely we didn’t factor them in at all”
Given that I’d not previously enjoyed the fellow series titles that I’d read, I nearly returned this library loan without reading. I thought that I’d try one last attempt though and wow - such a clever interpretation and commentary on the philosophical side of the topic. One of the difficulties that I often find with ecology is the ego from some humans thinking that it can only be things that are actions from human hands and control. Not to say that we shouldn’t take responsibility for the choices that we make, and any resulting negative impact, but this takes that wider view of human vs non human sharing of the planet. Some properly jaw dropping concepts put across, and definitely an author that I’d be interested in. Any book to accurately and contextually reference Talking Heads on several pages is just genius - ceci n’est pas une pipe y’know
March 22, 2023
I found this to be rambling and at times where I did understand what the author was saying, I simply disagreed.
Read
April 23, 2023not really sure what he was on about…
November 21, 2024
'Presencia' en Heidegger
Vorhanden: "disponible, presente".
"Las cosas se nos hacen presentes cuando destacan, cuando no funcionan bien. Vas a toda prisa por el supermercado para terminar la compra cuanto antes, y de repente resbalas en una baldosa (alguien ha echado demasiado abrillantador). Mientras te caes ridículamente al suelo, te fijas por primera vez en él, en su color, en su diseño, en los materiales que lo componen, aunque te hubieses estado apoyando todo el tiempo en él mientras hacías la compra. El estar presente ocupa un lugar secundario con respecto a esa especie de "ocurrir", lo que significa, argumenta Heidegger, que el ser no está presente, y por eso califica su filosofía de 'deconstrucción' o 'desestructuración. Lo que está desestructurando es la metafísica de la presencia, lo cual viene a significar que algunas cosas son más reales que otras, y son más reales porque están presentes con más frecuencia".
'Zuhanden': "a mano" (dada su presencia).
OOO: Ontologia Orientada al Objeto. El tejón husmeando puede conocer igual que tu reflexivamente: la razón ya no es el sistema predominante a la hora de acercarse a un objeto.
"Las cosas pasan sin que les prestemos demasiada atención (disponibilidad inmediata), pero las mismas cosas parecen diferentes cuando funcionan mal (presencia inmediata)".
Lo real y la realidad en Kant > realizador: "el sujeto trascendental". La verdad VS lo verdadoso. Lo difuso del "lo". 'Dasein' o "estar ahí".
"Por eso creé el concepto de hiperobjeto en mi libro El pensamiento ecológico. Un hiperobjeto es una cosa tan grande en el tiempo y en el espacio que solo podemos ir viendo fragmentos de ellos de cuando en cuando; los entran y salen del tiempo humano; terminan contaminándolo todo si nos encontramos en su interior (a este fenómeno lo denomino viscosidad). Imaginemos todas las bolsas de plástico que existen: todas ellas, todas las que existirán en todas partes. Ese montón de bolsas de plástico es un hiperobjeto: un ente que se distribuye a gran escala en el espacio y en el tiempo de tal manera que solo podemos acceder a pequeños fragmentos cada vez, y de una manera que trasciende evidentemente los modos de acceso y las escalas meramente humanas".
Vorhanden: "disponible, presente".
"Las cosas se nos hacen presentes cuando destacan, cuando no funcionan bien. Vas a toda prisa por el supermercado para terminar la compra cuanto antes, y de repente resbalas en una baldosa (alguien ha echado demasiado abrillantador). Mientras te caes ridículamente al suelo, te fijas por primera vez en él, en su color, en su diseño, en los materiales que lo componen, aunque te hubieses estado apoyando todo el tiempo en él mientras hacías la compra. El estar presente ocupa un lugar secundario con respecto a esa especie de "ocurrir", lo que significa, argumenta Heidegger, que el ser no está presente, y por eso califica su filosofía de 'deconstrucción' o 'desestructuración. Lo que está desestructurando es la metafísica de la presencia, lo cual viene a significar que algunas cosas son más reales que otras, y son más reales porque están presentes con más frecuencia".
'Zuhanden': "a mano" (dada su presencia).
OOO: Ontologia Orientada al Objeto. El tejón husmeando puede conocer igual que tu reflexivamente: la razón ya no es el sistema predominante a la hora de acercarse a un objeto.
"Las cosas pasan sin que les prestemos demasiada atención (disponibilidad inmediata), pero las mismas cosas parecen diferentes cuando funcionan mal (presencia inmediata)".
Lo real y la realidad en Kant > realizador: "el sujeto trascendental". La verdad VS lo verdadoso. Lo difuso del "lo". 'Dasein' o "estar ahí".
"Por eso creé el concepto de hiperobjeto en mi libro El pensamiento ecológico. Un hiperobjeto es una cosa tan grande en el tiempo y en el espacio que solo podemos ir viendo fragmentos de ellos de cuando en cuando; los entran y salen del tiempo humano; terminan contaminándolo todo si nos encontramos en su interior (a este fenómeno lo denomino viscosidad). Imaginemos todas las bolsas de plástico que existen: todas ellas, todas las que existirán en todas partes. Ese montón de bolsas de plástico es un hiperobjeto: un ente que se distribuye a gran escala en el espacio y en el tiempo de tal manera que solo podemos acceder a pequeños fragmentos cada vez, y de una manera que trasciende evidentemente los modos de acceso y las escalas meramente humanas".
November 18, 2021
Lyginant su kitom Mortono knygom čia jau atsiradę nemažai pamokymų ir patarimų, tokio pamoralizavimo ekologinės gyvensenos klausimais. Ypač keista buvo skaityti apie jo išrastą meno kriterijų - kad jeigu tikras menas, tai jau ne iš žmogaus perspektyvos "byloja", o iš kitos gyvybės perspektyvos, o jeigu antropocentrinis, tai - kičas. Bet iš tikrųjų aišku, kad Mortonui nelabai rūpi, kas tas tikras, kas netikras menas, daug labiau jis nori pasakyti, kad menas jau seniausiai yra išmokęs mus pagauti tą, ko niekad nepatyrėm ir nepatirsim, pajusti tą, kam žmogaus kūno galios per mažos/ per didelės/ per grubios, etc. Ir šiaip, knygoj yra labai gerų filosofijos klasikų perinterpretavimų, ir šiaip įdomių vietų. Tai nepikta galiausiai už tą mokslinio nešališkumo neišlaikymą, gal kaip tik smagu, kad senstanti žvaigždė nekartoja savęs paties kaip papūga, o juda nenuspėjama kryptim.
March 12, 2024
2.5 stars!
This book had some good bits of information but for the most part was very much philosophical and off-topic (that’s what it seemed like to me).
This book had some good bits of information but for the most part was very much philosophical and off-topic (that’s what it seemed like to me).
March 10, 2025
I am giving it 3 stars because the author leads their readership on several innovative and very interesting reflections. Although I appreciate the references to various fields (history, design, architecture, plastic arts, ecocriticism, music, biology, etc.), it is sometimes difficult to follow the course of their speech/discussion.
October 27, 2023
After two reads, I’m still not sure if there’s actual brilliance here or if what’s going on is more like two drunks at a bar delighted with themselves about the brilliant conversation they think they’re having. Or it could be that philosophy and I mix like oil and water. There’s either an awful lot being said in All Art is Ecological or terribly little. The upside, I suppose, is that either way it all happens in just over a hundred pages.
The general gist, I think, is that this—the Anthropocene—is a remarkable time to be alive. It’s remarkable not because it’s all doom and gloom what with climate change and mass extinction and resource depletion etc. etc. but because we have the opportunity to engage with the world—with ecology—in a less rigid, less polarizing, more nuanced, and more inclusive way. To Morton, being ecological isn’t something someone wakes up and decides to do one day or something that takes specific focus or is embodied in certain actions and not others. We are all ecological because we are all part of this world, regardless of how apart from other people or other organisms we might feel. And the kind of care we think we need to have is often the wrong kind or directed in the wrong place, and if we cared just a little bit less—as in a more playful and less overwrought kind of care—our care might go a lot further and do a lot more good. Because the kind of care we’ve exhibited up to now hasn’t served the human race—or the rest of the planet—all that well.
As for how all this ties into art, well, I think that’s also about being less uptight: art does something to you whether you want it to or not, just as the environment does something to us whether we want it to or not. Just as we do something to the environment—our ecology—whether we intend to or not. Morton doesn’t talk about electric cars or wind turbines or solar arrays, but each of those improves something at the expense of displacing or degrading or depriving or reducing something else. In the end, he just wants to, as the back jacket succinctly states, “open our eyes to the idea that emotion and experience are the basis for a deep philosophical engagement with ecology.”
Outside of other philosophers, I’m not sure who, exactly, is interested in a deep philosophical engagement with ecology. I think lots of other types of engagement—personal, practical, spiritual, ethical—would be far more useful and beneficial to the self and to everyone and everything else. Anyone engaging in any way would be better than what is mostly going on. And though Morton seems to put in a dig at Paul Kingsnorth’s Dark Mountain project (see my review of Confessions of a Recovering Environmentalist), I think they’re actually up to the same thing. Kingsnorth just says it in a way that I only needed to read once to understand.
The general gist, I think, is that this—the Anthropocene—is a remarkable time to be alive. It’s remarkable not because it’s all doom and gloom what with climate change and mass extinction and resource depletion etc. etc. but because we have the opportunity to engage with the world—with ecology—in a less rigid, less polarizing, more nuanced, and more inclusive way. To Morton, being ecological isn’t something someone wakes up and decides to do one day or something that takes specific focus or is embodied in certain actions and not others. We are all ecological because we are all part of this world, regardless of how apart from other people or other organisms we might feel. And the kind of care we think we need to have is often the wrong kind or directed in the wrong place, and if we cared just a little bit less—as in a more playful and less overwrought kind of care—our care might go a lot further and do a lot more good. Because the kind of care we’ve exhibited up to now hasn’t served the human race—or the rest of the planet—all that well.
As for how all this ties into art, well, I think that’s also about being less uptight: art does something to you whether you want it to or not, just as the environment does something to us whether we want it to or not. Just as we do something to the environment—our ecology—whether we intend to or not. Morton doesn’t talk about electric cars or wind turbines or solar arrays, but each of those improves something at the expense of displacing or degrading or depriving or reducing something else. In the end, he just wants to, as the back jacket succinctly states, “open our eyes to the idea that emotion and experience are the basis for a deep philosophical engagement with ecology.”
Outside of other philosophers, I’m not sure who, exactly, is interested in a deep philosophical engagement with ecology. I think lots of other types of engagement—personal, practical, spiritual, ethical—would be far more useful and beneficial to the self and to everyone and everything else. Anyone engaging in any way would be better than what is mostly going on. And though Morton seems to put in a dig at Paul Kingsnorth’s Dark Mountain project (see my review of Confessions of a Recovering Environmentalist), I think they’re actually up to the same thing. Kingsnorth just says it in a way that I only needed to read once to understand.
October 4, 2025
1.5 ngl. I gained little to nothing from this book. I know the book was supposed to open my mind to new ideas & promote intellectualism but unfortunately it all came off as pretentious and insufferable. writing coming from an arrogant place posing as humble.
here is what I gained:
- the habit of acknowledging and considering nonhumans should be everyday and automatic as opposed to being big ideas/ actions
- the mindset of being secure in yourself as a part of the earth= being “ecological”
- “‘beautiful’ is often said to be the opposite of ‘useful.’ it’s held to be an unnecessary inconvenience.” challenging this! using aesthetics in art and art as a tool. or simply aesthetics as a tool. really interesting point.
anyways that’s pretty much it!
here is what I gained:
- the habit of acknowledging and considering nonhumans should be everyday and automatic as opposed to being big ideas/ actions
- the mindset of being secure in yourself as a part of the earth= being “ecological”
- “‘beautiful’ is often said to be the opposite of ‘useful.’ it’s held to be an unnecessary inconvenience.” challenging this! using aesthetics in art and art as a tool. or simply aesthetics as a tool. really interesting point.
anyways that’s pretty much it!
June 3, 2024
Combining some interesting points with pseudo-philosophical jargon and a desire to attract a younger audience with constant pop culture references and informal language results in phrases like:
“Art is a place where we get to see what it means to be human or whatever/ I’m going to push up some faders on the Kantian mixing desk”
In short, because of its desperate attempt to appeal to everyone, I don't think this book would appeal to anyone.
I came away with less of an idea of how all art is ecological and more of a reaffirmation of the unfortunate truth that “Kant didn’t turn into Yoda”.
“Art is a place where we get to see what it means to be human or whatever/ I’m going to push up some faders on the Kantian mixing desk”
In short, because of its desperate attempt to appeal to everyone, I don't think this book would appeal to anyone.
I came away with less of an idea of how all art is ecological and more of a reaffirmation of the unfortunate truth that “Kant didn’t turn into Yoda”.
May 16, 2022
Some interesting ideas which challenge the main stream thinking on 'climate change' (one of which is that we should stop using this term, for good reasons). Also coming under severe scrutiny is the whole concept of anthropocentrism. However, so much of this little book was waffle which went over my head. It is either highly intellectual stuff, or nonsense à la Emperor's New Clothes (designed to make the average person feel too dim to admit they don't understand it!)
February 16, 2023
The mention of Deleuze on p16 is....interesting. I think he's gambling on the fact that most readers won't have read Deleuze either and he will get away with faking it. Maybe I am jaded by marking too many undergrad papers.
I really wouldn't bother with this one
I really wouldn't bother with this one
October 7, 2021
100+ pages of non-sense. take a writing course, sir.
October 9, 2022
100 pages
Around 106 quotes
100 or more of men, 5 of women.
Around 106 quotes
100 or more of men, 5 of women.
October 1, 2024
All Art is Ecological is an ambitious and thought-provoking work that challenges traditional ways of thinking about the climate crisis. Positioned within Penguin's Green Ideas series, the book presents a philosophical examination of environmental collapse, blending elements of popular culture, music, and art to deliver a unique perspective - which I personally love. Morton, often referred to as the "philosopher of the Anthropocene", takes on the monumental task of rethinking how we understand global warming and its effects, introducing the concept of hyperobjects —phenomena so vast and incomprehensible that they escape conventional reasoning.
Morton’s writing can be dense and complex and definitely difficult to read. While his ideas, such as the concept of hyperobjects, offer original and interesting insights, the presentation often feels puzzling. The notion is a particularly valuable contribution to ecological thought, illustrating how concepts like global warming exist beyond human comprehension and control.
At times, Morton tingled my linguistic playfulness, inventing terms and concepts that may not always resonate with the reader. His casual name-dropping of cultural figures like Björk, as well as his tendency to indulge in being self-referential, may come across as a bit too much.
Despite these critiques, and the fact that Morton is definitely a pretentious boomer that writes for other pretentious boomers and embodies the spirit of pretentious boomers, Morton's central argument is compelling. He suggests that traditional ways of talking about climate change—such as focusing on individual actions like reducing energy consumption or driving less—are inadequate for addressing the scale of the crisis. He critiques the often hierarchical and moralistic approach that dominates environmental discussions, favouring instead a more complex, non-dualistic way of thinking that acknowledges the enormity of the challenges we face.
The book’s strength lies in its ability to connect ecological thinking with broader cultural phenomena. Morton skilfully draws from various disciplines, weaving together philosophy, science, and art to create a narrative that reflects the multifaceted nature of our current environmental predicament.
For readers interested in climate change from a philosophical perspective, All Art is Ecological offers an unconventional but intellectually stimulating approach. Nevertheless, the book succeeds in challenging its audience to rethink how we perceive and discuss environmental collapse, and it brings art into the conversation in a way that is rarely seen in ecological discourse.
To conclude, this way a nice discovery and Morton’s ideas, while occasionally obscure, are nonetheless important contributions to how we grapple with the enormity of the climate crisis -and if you're interested in art, culture and philosophy, this is for you.
Morton’s writing can be dense and complex and definitely difficult to read. While his ideas, such as the concept of hyperobjects, offer original and interesting insights, the presentation often feels puzzling. The notion is a particularly valuable contribution to ecological thought, illustrating how concepts like global warming exist beyond human comprehension and control.
At times, Morton tingled my linguistic playfulness, inventing terms and concepts that may not always resonate with the reader. His casual name-dropping of cultural figures like Björk, as well as his tendency to indulge in being self-referential, may come across as a bit too much.
Despite these critiques, and the fact that Morton is definitely a pretentious boomer that writes for other pretentious boomers and embodies the spirit of pretentious boomers, Morton's central argument is compelling. He suggests that traditional ways of talking about climate change—such as focusing on individual actions like reducing energy consumption or driving less—are inadequate for addressing the scale of the crisis. He critiques the often hierarchical and moralistic approach that dominates environmental discussions, favouring instead a more complex, non-dualistic way of thinking that acknowledges the enormity of the challenges we face.
The book’s strength lies in its ability to connect ecological thinking with broader cultural phenomena. Morton skilfully draws from various disciplines, weaving together philosophy, science, and art to create a narrative that reflects the multifaceted nature of our current environmental predicament.
For readers interested in climate change from a philosophical perspective, All Art is Ecological offers an unconventional but intellectually stimulating approach. Nevertheless, the book succeeds in challenging its audience to rethink how we perceive and discuss environmental collapse, and it brings art into the conversation in a way that is rarely seen in ecological discourse.
To conclude, this way a nice discovery and Morton’s ideas, while occasionally obscure, are nonetheless important contributions to how we grapple with the enormity of the climate crisis -and if you're interested in art, culture and philosophy, this is for you.
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