a Diary of Straw and Seawater
2024
Grass mural, table installation and temporary ceramics presented for Open Studios at PAiR Residency, Pāvilosta, Latvia
Lichen, pebbles, wood, thread, moss, grass, shells, amber, sand, wild clay
The installation ’A Diary of Straw and Seawater’ is a visual diary documenting my encounters with the coastal landscape of Pavilosta over the course of a month-long residency. Through photography, drawing and curated, sometimes slightly modified, found material from the surrounding area of dunes, the work traces a personal dialogue with a place.
Inspired by the movement and forms of coastal grasses, the installation contains several variations of imaginative calligraphy as well as a temporary grass mural.
Altogether, the collection reflect on themes of temporality, scale, and the interaction between human presence and non-human forces, questioning: how can I illuminate what is already there and showcase nature’s handwriting while at the same time expressing my own?
Inspired by the movement and forms of coastal grasses, the installation contains several variations of imaginative calligraphy as well as a temporary grass mural.
Altogether, the collection reflect on themes of temporality, scale, and the interaction between human presence and non-human forces, questioning: how can I illuminate what is already there and showcase nature’s handwriting while at the same time expressing my own?
I write my diary with coastlines, while the movements of swaying Lyme grass whisper the words to me.
I capture the scenery through the light-sensing cells of my retina and pin it to my memory with pine needles.
I gather the soil with my fingertips, bundle leaves, and make piles of washed-up pebbles.
How can you record a landscape with your whole body?
Can you assemble something that is already whole?
How do you become part of the collection yourself?