Sea Worriers 2019-2020
In August 2019 Belinda and fellow artist Mary van den began a long-term collaboration exploring seaweed. This material, growing in abundance on Sydney’s coastline, thrives on carbon. It has vast potential to address environmental issues. Seaweed reduces methane emissions when added to cattle feed, it’s also valued as an ingredient in aquaculture and healthcare products.
Keen to inspire a sense of responsibility for the environment more broadly they worked with Mary’s art students at Coast Art Centre in Sydney’s Little Bay. These students all share a love of the coastline, they were also angry about the state of the marine environment.
The 2020 Covid pandemic sadly brought an end to the vibrant weekly meetings. Confined to the local area in lockdown, the subject they were exploring became even more potent as the environment seemed to shine with less human activity.
Students responded to this by continuing their research independently, they expanded conversations about the environment to family and friends. The subject also expanded to reflect concerns about overuse of plastics, over-consumption, how we recycle, disposal of chemicals. Daily exercise sessions became an opportunity to collect rubbish from beaches and roadways. They continued to make art and new materials were incorporated – the detritus collected on their walks.
When classes resumed in 2021 it was agreed that students wanted to raise awareness of their concerns, they wanted to change behaviour!
Calling themselves Sea Worriers a collaborative exhibition was opened in May 2021 by the Mayor of Randwick.
Keen to inspire a sense of responsibility for the environment more broadly they worked with Mary’s art students at Coast Art Centre in Sydney’s Little Bay. These students all share a love of the coastline, they were also angry about the state of the marine environment.
The 2020 Covid pandemic sadly brought an end to the vibrant weekly meetings. Confined to the local area in lockdown, the subject they were exploring became even more potent as the environment seemed to shine with less human activity.
Students responded to this by continuing their research independently, they expanded conversations about the environment to family and friends. The subject also expanded to reflect concerns about overuse of plastics, over-consumption, how we recycle, disposal of chemicals. Daily exercise sessions became an opportunity to collect rubbish from beaches and roadways. They continued to make art and new materials were incorporated – the detritus collected on their walks.
When classes resumed in 2021 it was agreed that students wanted to raise awareness of their concerns, they wanted to change behaviour!
Calling themselves Sea Worriers a collaborative exhibition was opened in May 2021 by the Mayor of Randwick.
