In 2008, our global plastic consumption was estimated at 260 million tons. In the North Pacific Ocean, there is 6 times more plastic debris than plankton. There is an island in the middle of the North Pacific ocean —known as the Great Pacific Garbage Patch, that is mostly composed of plastic and other man-made waste. 10% of the plastic we use yearly end up in the ocean. Some of these components used to make plastic like phthalates, a group of chemicals used to make plastics more flexible and harder to break and Bisphenol A, a colorless solid that is soluble in organic solvents, but poorly soluble in water, are harmful to our health.
Reenie Charriere, USA is one of the High Art Fridays artists who has an innate love for the environment and has made a progressive step of addressing this issue through her art. Her plastic trash into art waterfall installation, Splash, consists of approximately 160 plastic bags filled with water collected from the Okojobi region, and plastic shards collected around the world. The dimensions of Splash are 168 x 36 x 60″.
“I am most interested in how objects accumulate in our everyday spaces. My work is motivated by the drama of landscapes and waterways, urban and rural. I experiment by collecting and transforming everyday materials, especially throwaways. Through photography, drawing, and sculptural installation my notions play upon the unpredictable juxtaposition of natural and synthetic matter.” Reenie Charriere
This past October Reenie participated in “Water Our World”—an exhibition addressing the condition of our waters. The event that took place at the Pearson Lakes Art Center in Iowa and was sponsored by GRIT Collaborative. The Iowa Lakeside Laboratory in Okoboji was a co-sponsor.
The water in the piece was collected in the Okojobi region, located in northwest Iowa; the plastic bits and shards that color the work were gathered in waterways in the Pacific, the Atlantic and the Mediterranean. My work is a small reminder that plastic is toxic to our waters, and my collections of washed debris are an ongoing prevention. This will be the 6th waterfall installation that I have created. Others were exhibited in Oakland, San Francisco, Santa Cruz, Maine and Oregon.
HAF: How did you learn about “Water Our World” exhibition?
Reenie: I learned about the exhibition from an online search. I often apply to exhibitions and events that concern environmental issues, especially relating to water.
HAF: How many artists were involved in the project, and what types of presentations did they showcase?
Reenie: The curators, Dana O’Malley, and Joshua Marquez received over 200 submissions for Water Our World, and the exhibit included nine visual artists including Painters, Installation Artists, Sculptors, Videographers, and Film-Makers, and nine composers. Each Visual Art piece was paired with a Musical piece performed live in the Exhibition Space by professional musicians. Visual Arts and Composers were from all over the world, including, the US, New Zealand, Hong Kong, Philippines, and Canada.
HAF: I understand that there was an artist talk at the close of the exhibition. Overall, how effective was this exhibition and do you think it engaged the community to take a more proactive approach to our water?
Reenie: The exhibit was very effective, the audience was completely engaged, made up of all ages, and the conversations continued late into the night after the performance/presentation. The Okoboji region seems very pristine and rural, but there is a strong awareness about water, and pollution. I was even told that plastic shards are found in the middle of the lake, caught in plants, and you can see them when you canoe out to the middle of the lake.