DIY Marine Restoration
Installation, 2023
Focal Point, Newlyn & the Exchange galleries
Essex, Cornwall, UK
DIY Marine Restoration, 2023, was exhibited in 'Storm Warning' at Focal Point Gallery and at Newlyn Art Gallery & The Exchange, is now being used by Cornwall Wildlife trust to plant seagrass.
DIY Marine Restoration, re-appropriated DIY household tools and materials to assist in restoration efforts of seagrass. Seagrass supports diverse marine ecosystems, defends against coastal erosion and combat against climate change: a hectare of seagrass may store two tonnes of CO2 a year and hold it for centuries. However, the UK has experienced a loss of up to 92% of seagrass meadows in the last 100 years. Mortar guns are adapted into a tool that can be used to propagate seeds into the sea floor, whilst drainage pipes are turned into cassettes for transplanting seagrass plants and their roots.
After the 'Storm Warning' DIY Marine Restoration was donated to wildlife charities and is now being used to seed seagrass, with great success. They have proved to be more effective than previous methods and produce less plastic waste.
