Underlying the whimsical nature of this installation artwork is a request to consider the precarious situation present within the ocean environment.
The material used is intrinsic to the work. Plastics are the key component of marine debris. The use of everyday plastics to construct a hovering world of phytoplankton aims to highlight the impact of human activity on this important but invisible world. When you are at the bottom of the food chain you influence the health of everything above.
Phytoplankton, seemingly inconsequential, is in fact the block on which all life rests. They produce more than half our oxygen and are essential to the planet’s metabolism. Yet they are diminishing at a rate of 1% year, absorbing and concentrating toxins from the water and travelling on debris or in ballast water to become hazards in exotic locations.
It is relevant that we are reminded that our wellbeing is influenced by the interconnectedness of life.
Hitchhikers was featured in Harbour Sculpture in 2013, and was joint winner with Leanne’s other entry Spineless of the Rennie Indoor Sculpture prize.
Hitchhikers has also been shown at Hazelhurst Regional Gallery and with ‘Living Data’ at the University of Technology Sydney. A selection from the installation have been purchased by both UTS (hanging in the climate change cluster C3 laboratory were they research these organisms) and a private collector.