‘Plunge, Klein Blue’ is inspired by my desire to make intimate emotional connections between my own body and the ocean. Life began in the oceans, and our bodies in a liquid pool. By volume human bodies are made up of 60% water, whilst our molecules are 99% water. This highlights our deep connection to water and perhaps why water can heal the mind and body and help tap into a calm and creative state of being.
Mimicking the colour Klein Blue, references Yves Klein’s obsession with ‘the void’ and oblivion arising from the atomic age. While our ‘void’ is the threat posed by climate change and the ecological degradation of bodies of water, rather than atomic obliteration (although this threat has not passed), this work seeks to reflect on the vulnerability of our oceans and waterways at this time in history whilst connecting us to a spiritual immaterial dimension. 

The Blue Planet, Earth resides in the Goldilocks Zone, an area in our solar system where life exists solely because water can exist in a liquid state. Water is the essence of our survival, yet contemporary water is in a precarious condition. ‘Liquid Gold’ makes reference to water as the new gold, it also examines droplets as a metaphor for the lack of unity needed to find solutions to the many environmental issues facing water. Layers of recycled hydrophobic materials were left outside overnight. Droplets from condensation gathered on the materials and, rather than being absorbed, remained intact. The transparent, mirror surface of each droplet highlights the colour of the substrate as well as absorbing bending and reflecting the outdoor surroundings, morphing each drop into its own miniature world of contemplation or abstract landscape. Due to the ephemeral and transient nature of the installation, this photograph records nature’s performance.