This year’s Earth Day comes against a stark backdrop. Last year was the warmest on record, and a recent UN climate report recently warned that it’s “now or never to limit global warming.”

As the impacts of climate change grow increasingly urgent, the art community is recognizing its role in addressing environmental challenges through various initiatives and practices. Among the most significant of these is the Gallery Climate Coalition (GCC), founded in 2020, which unites a network of galleries in their commitment to sustainability. The organization—comprising over 900 members—emphasizes how galleries can collectively help to curb environmental damage.

Hauser & Wirth, a prominent member of the GCC, is one of the galleries spearheading these changes, committing to halve its emissions by 2030, which aligns with the 2015 UN Paris Agreement and the GCC’s mission statement.

“We are working in an industry that has entrenched habits and behaviors, and we need to steadily identify ways in which to shift the dial,” said Cliodhna Murphy, Hauser & Wirth’s global head of environmental sustainability. “I have been regularly meeting with a group of like-minded individuals from galleries of scale to discuss how we standardize the approach to sustainability across the art world, working towards the same goals. This is something that the GCC is also active in promoting in order to create a level playing field across all of the galleries and how they report their findings.”

In recognition of Earth Day, Artsy spoke with six galleries to identify five key ways that they are making strides toward a greener future.

The use of air travel to transport artworks is one of the pivotal practices being addressed by galleries to mitigate their environmental impact. The use of sea freight—which, according to the GCC, is 60 times less environmentally damaging than air transportation—is one of the main shifts that is taking place in this regard.

Hauser & Wirth is among the galleries using sea freight for transporting its high-value artworks. “There is a long-held preconception that sea freight is not an option for high-value painting, but I discovered that with the right crating, insurance, and remote supervision, it is absolutely a viable route,” Murphy told Artsy. “As a result, last year, we saved 200 [equivalent tonnes of] carbon dioxide by shifting six exhibitions to sea freight. That’s equivalent [to] 150 return economy flights between London and New York.”

Echoing this commitment, Roberts Projects’s senior registrar and sustainability liaison, Siobhan Bradley, revealed that the most considerable way the Los Angeles–based gallery has improved is through its packing and shipping methods—specifically by introducing alternative packing materials, reusing crates, and consolidating shipments. By doing so, the gallery has cut both environmental and financial costs. “These changes have been well received, particularly because they are generally cost-saving,” Bradley told Artsy.

Several galleries are integrating environmental issues into their exhibition programs by hosting benefit exhibitions that directly tackle climate change. One example is Tribeca’s 1969 Gallery, which recently hosted “World Beyond World” from January 18th to February 24th this year. This exhibition brought together 20 artists to support ocean conservation. Proceeds were donated to Only One, a nonprofit based in New York dedicated to restoring ocean health and addressing the climate crisis.

“Eric Oglander has these wonderful sculptural jars filled with an entire ecosystem of algae, snails, and plant life,” said the gallery’s founder, Quang Bao, reflecting on the exhibition. “We had to help keep the jars clean, lit over the days we were closed to help photosynthesis along. I loved them, and I think visitors, especially children, seemed to understand the deeper lesson—that you really have to handle the world we live in with conscience and handheld care.”

Charles Moffett is another gallery taking a similar approach. The New York gallery is currently gearing up for its own benefit exhibition next month, working closely with Art to Acres, an initiative focused on funding high-integrity conservation projects worldwide. The show, titled “Not Too Late,” will run from May 3rd to June 7th and will feature all 10 of the gallery’s represented artists, among several others. “[Art to Acres] is converting the actions of what we do in the art world into meaningful change,” founder Charles Moffet told Artsy.

Hauser & Wirth is also hosting an Earth Day 2024 event with Art to Acres, where artist Mika Rottenberg will release a series of lamps. Proceeds will benefit both Art to Acres and the artist’s innovative studio in Tivoli, New York, where she employs plastic reclamation to create her fantastical and playful sculptures with intrusive vines in the Hudson Valley forests.

“One single artist studio or gallery can’t shift the landscape, but collective action amplifies our efforts, builds a movement, and contributes to climate resilience,” said Murphy, referencing that several of the gallery’s artists have embraced sustainable practices, including Anj Smith, Pipilotti Rist, and Larry Bell.

Actively reducing everyday waste is another way galleries are embedding sustainability practices into their operations. London’s Cristea Roberts Gallery, for example, is taking strides in integrating sustainable materials into its day-to-day operations. Alan Cristea, co-director of the gallery, noted that the gallery is focused on reducing energy consumption and has actively banned polystyrene and reduced single-use plastics in favor of sustainable materials.

“There is still much work to be done, but by opening up conversations and making changes, however small, we hope to build long-term momentum for a sustainable art sector,” said Cristea. “Galleries are also in a unique position to leverage collectors, shipping partners, and the art sector in general to consider working in more permanent, environmentally responsible ways.”

Often, by switching to sustainable materials and making conscious everyday decisions, galleries and their artists are making a difference. “It’s been really incredible to watch a lot of galleries and artists become more invested in more sustainable practices, whether it’s as simple as changing how we get our power or changing the way in which we ship,” noted Moffett. “These small efforts do tend to have a ripple effect in a business and the art world.”

By implementing these measures, these galleries are both minimizing their environmental impact and influencing the art supply chain to adopt greener practices.

As digital technologies evolve, so do opportunities for reducing physical travel. Alan Cristea notes that the biggest leap for galleries is circumventing industry norms—which often demand environmentally taxing methods.

Since the COVID-19 pandemic halted the international art world circuit, galleries have become accustomed to exhibiting and selling art online. This also extends to their outreach when it comes to building and maintaining relationships with clients worldwide. In San Francisco, Hosfelt Gallery has drastically reduced unnecessary travel by supplementing in-person meetings with online interactions.

“The worst thing any of us do is fly,” founder Todd Hosfelt said. “We need to do less of it. Instead of hopping on a plane for every event, ask, ‘What do you hope to achieve by going?’ and ‘Can you achieve it without flying there?’ In other words, is that trip actually necessary? I used to fly all over the world to do studio visits or meetings….Now, I mostly use Zoom. How many staff people do you really need at an art fair? Can you tack your holiday plans onto the front or back of a work trip? I’m not suggesting never flying anywhere; I’m saying do it thoughtfully.”

JaeMyung Noh first started collecting among his classmates in high school. It was there, collecting edition prints and toys with his friends, that he discovered the tangible allure of art, a passion nurtured by his mother from an early age. Despite his initial childhood reluctance, visits to prominent museums like MoMA, the Guggenheim, and the Metropolitan Museum of Art with his mother laid the foundation for his enduring love of art.

Today, Noh collects with his wife, SoHyun Park, traveling to art capitals such as Miami, Hong Kong, Paris, Tokyo, and New York to peruse and purchase works. “My focus with our collection—my personal collection—is it’s young and international, and it’s young and fresh, so that is our slogan, ‘Young, Fresh, and Classy,’” Noh explained in an interview with Artsy. This mantra is the heart of his latest venture, an art fair inspired by his experience as a collector: Art OnO, meaning “One and Only.”

Art OnO is Noh’s response to the international attention Seoul’s thriving art scene has garnered, particularly since the inaugural Frieze Seoul three years ago. Motivated to nurture the local art community amid this global buzz, Noh designed a fair that facilitates dialogue between South Korean and international galleries. “I wanted to see the local artists, local galleries, and local art scene grow,” he said. After its VIP preview yesterday, Art OnO opens today through April 21st and welcomes about 40 galleries from 15 countries. featuring major galleries such as Berlin-founded Peres Projects and Hong Kong stalwart Pearl Lam Galleries alongside emerging tastemakers such as Seoul’s CYLINDER and Paris’s cadet capela.

“We mix up everything—we don’t divide sectors, we don’t have sections, so you’ll see everything in just one pot and some big names next to really young talents,” said Noh. Art OnO’s inaugural edition will take place at the SETEC center, located in the southeast corner of Seoul. The venue, which can accommodate up to 100 galleries, will provide ample space for each participating gallery.

Noh’s vision for Art OnO is tied to his journey as a collector, which began in a convivial, community-oriented environment. This early immersion into art collecting instilled in him a preference for a more approachable and less segmented art world that welcomes dialogue and discovery over exclusivity. Here, with Art OnO, he intends to prioritize the art lover and the relationship between Seoul’s galleries and the international art world.

“The biggest influence was from obviously Art Basel and I really liked Liste—not just the [experimental] works, but the galleries they show,” Noh said. “I wanted to see people just walk around and not so serious. They kind of chill and they talk about art, and that’s what I want to see from my fair. Not just about the value, because nowadays people talk about the value of art, not just the art itself, but they talk about the price. They talk about the brand. They talk about the names. Not that I’m saying that it’s not important. It is important. But I want to hear people talking about art itself rather than the value.”

Art OnO is designed to be an immersive experience that attracts true art lovers—those drawn not just to the artists but to the stories and the creative process behind each piece. Noh’s curatorial vision for the fair reflects a similar ethos to his personal approach to collecting. He highlights his experiences collecting works by artists such as Simon Fujiwara, whom he encountered at the Istanbul Biennial, and Ryan Schneider, whom he first discovered at a fair in Miami, as examples of artists whom Noh initially took a risk on and have since seen a surge in popularity. Noh has consistently sought to support art that pushes boundaries and challenges conventional tastes. His collection strategy—taking risks on less established artists—echoes Art OnO’s commitment to featuring emerging talents alongside well-known names.

“When people see something really new and something for the first time, then they don’t like it, but they see it for a few times, and then they start thinking it’s unique,” Noh said. “I tell people when you see something really new and you think it’s weird, then you should go for it. Because that’s something that you haven’t seen before.”

Art OnO is the latest in a string of alternative fairs, from Basel to New York, that have emerged in recent years, springing from a desire for a complementary, more intimate art experience. Noh is determined to steer Art OnO in a direction that stimulates conversation about new, sometimes shocking art, pushing against the mainstream narrative that often prioritizes market value over artistic merit.

“I wanted to bring that question to our fair so that we show people that there are so many either young or fresh artists that you’ve never seen but show a great quality of works,” Noh said. “We have to go back to the simple question, ‘Is it the quality or the price that makes people think that a certain artist or the work is good?’ Because when we see something expensive, then a lot of people think it’s great, and when people see something cheap, then people don’t really pay much attention to it.”

With Art OnO, Noh is channeling his collecting vision into the fair’s foundation. The “Young, Fresh, and Classy” slogan, directly influenced by his and Park’s tastes, drives the curation and presentation of the fair. This approach not only distinguishes Art OnO from more traditional fairs but also gives insight into what Noh values in his personal collection.

Here, he takes us inside his collection, showcasing the inventive and engaging art that the Art OnO founder seeks to champion.

Patrick Eugène Draped Down for Town, 2022

“One of the biggest reasons for owning a work by Patrick Eugène is because it can provide both comfort and joy when hung in my space and seen every day as an artwork. Among my collection, there are also grotesque pieces, but at times, the comfort provided by such works [as Eugène’s] can be substantial.” —JaeMyung Noh

Song Seung-eun, A Boiler Spewing Fiction, 2022

“I first encountered Song Seung-eun, one of the Korean emerging artists, and continued to track her works. Over time, I noticed the artist’s maturation in her paintings, which is the reason that I am motivated to start collecting her works. Besides, this artwork, I have been collecting Song Seung-eun’s works consistently since her previous series.” —JN

Rebecca Ackroyd, Direct Lines, 2019