Kelp Forest

Living on land we sometimes forget how intertwined the oceans are with our very existence. The oceans have absorbed a great deal of the warming caused by human activity. From increasingly extreme storms to melting glaciers we face an unstable climate future. And while plastics may seem to be a separate problem, they are also part and parcel of the consequences of our dependence and reckless consumption of fossil fuels.

These works on paper began as a way to plan out future fiber projects. As I experimented, I realized that paper was actually an ideal vehicle for expressing the fragility of this moment. Suspending the pieces in the air conveyed the tenuousness of the moment. Hanging the two dimensional in in a three-dimensional way emphasizes the complexity of the problem. It isn’t an either/or situation. Moving one piece affects the whole. The problem needs to be looked at from many angles.

I also did not want to neglect the sheer beauty of the natural world. The pieces needed to be larger than human scale to create a sense of wonder. My hope is that this work will remind people how essential the oceans are to our existence.

This piece was originally shown at Galatea Fine Art in Boston in a 7 x 7 x 9 foot configuration. It can be reconfigured to fit other spaces.