Vancouver Maritime Museum
"if i lived in the ocean" july - nov 2021

"If I Lived in the Ocean" inhabits an exhibition space at the Vancouver Maritime Museum, from floor to ceiling; materials from the maritime shipping industry, consumer products, fine art works rooted in traditional Japanese art aesthetics, paintings, forms and nature.

Gyotaku is the Japanese art of painting a real fish then transferring the paint to Washi (paper) creating an exact image of the fish.
Gyotaku hides behind curtains of plastic and jute, visible to the visitor who looks deeper. Thousands of feet of green plastic film dangle overhead as beds of kelp. Bamboo, complete with leaves and branches frame the space, reminding us of the bamboo poles the Samurai once used for fly-fishing in the Edo period.
Large canvas paintings of fish, and other aquatic life hang, silently, wanting attention.

Plastic film forming the kelp beds comes from large plastic bags that are used in the shipping industry for grains, beans, cacao and coffee etc. In the category of "Immersive Installation", the assemblage of materials, techniques and artistry in this exhibition combine to offer a special place for audiences to be "within" this constructed environment and to reflect. 
Did we evolve from fish starting 300 million years ago? Are we at a tipping point? Has man overpowered nature? Is nature rebelling?

Opening the exhibition is an aquatic performance. Three women struggle to swim from an adjacent shoreline. They proceed down boulders adorned in long, flowing, blue/green plastic they have made from "GrainPro" plastic bags that have been rescued from Coffee Roaster's garbage. Sunlight glimmers and reflects on the garments as they enter the ocean. They are the creators, it is their function to bring life forth and sustain it. It is a story of conflicting narratives as one can enjoy the visual entertainment and aesthetic while knowing there is something wrong with this scene. 
If I Lived in the Ocean - Ocean Wedding performance can be seen here -