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Artist: Marnie Snoek
University of New Mexico (UNM) Researchers:  Dr. Amy Clithero & Connie Hu
Medium: Plastic wrapped wire and air dry clay
Artist’s Statement:
After meeting with Amy, I immediately began putting my thoughts down on paper. The words that continued to arise throughout our discussion were terms I wanted to include into my piece in some way, and those words were community, togetherness, listen, hope, diversity, communication, respect, equity, team, and action. These ten words seemed to be the foundation of social accountability and I started to visualize growth stemming from those actions. I pictured a tree, with many of those words interwoven in the roots, coming together to create something beautiful. I decided to use different colours of wire to represent the diversity that is wanted and so heavily influences social accountability. That diversity comes together to create something strong; when we come together, we can grow. The box the tree stands in represents the division; whatever is on the outside affects the inside and the balance of right and wrong, and it is also a reminder that if one area takes all the focus (Covid-19, for example), other important issues are being overlooked. The overall image of the tree is trying to convey the idea that social accountability begins with the roots; you must go to the root of the problem to enact change and not just deal with things as they arise.