This art installation represents the state of beaches in the UAE. Completely made out of actual trash collected in Saadiyat, aiming to provide a contrast between the beauty that can be achieved when using the beach responsibly, and the hideous outcome humans have inflicted on our oceans. This art piece is inspired by the hotels’ mission to protect the turtles, and keep the commercial shores clean. All shores should be kept clean and safe for sea organisms, humans are at fault and this art piece is to hold them accountable, hence the title caught red-handed.
We aimed to make use of the current online situation due to the pandemic, and present our project in the most informative way possible. As a group, we created a stop motion video that can be displayed in virtual art exhibitions. My hand, fully painted in red, represents the harm humans have on the pretty beaches the earth provided us with. Below is the link for the project.
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This sculpture, designed after our trash-collecting experience, fully documents the reality of our beaches. It started off with a perfectly clean beach with organisms flourishing. This was due to the day just beginning and guests not yet appearing. Shortly after, we see cigarette butts, plastic bottles, masks, and many other wastes displayed in our sculpture being discarded. We also found a dead fish on the shore which we made sure to incorporate in our project. Every detail had a meaning, including the dying turtle as the government had to restrict guests from an area of the beach due to it being dedicated to turtles and their reproduction.
Although a difficulty, I believe the lack of material and trash was one of the greatest benefits to creating our project. We had to make everything work, and make everything from nothing. It sparked innovation and creativity which we managed to display. Some challenges revolved around the binding components of our project including the low-quality glue guns and scissors. We also had to make do with basic phone cameras and lighting.
This project provided me with multiple lessons I will incorporate into many different aspects of my life. Everything works out eventually, no matter how rough the start was. We managed to make trash look presentable and that was impressive.I would love to produce something like this on a higher level, in order to reach a wider audience. Better camera work and lighting, professional designers, and multiple days on the beach to fully understand the human effect on our lovely beaches. From the beginning we aimed to convey a strong message, humans have been caught red-handed polluting our beautiful beaches, and it must stop. This is not the end of our message and I will personally make sure many more people are informed.
Attached is the link to our presentation which includes more documentation and details.
https://docs.google.com/presentation/d/1gv4Dz2DRjj-W-4VeqCmVC8ymCpBBn1x71NpZYY_Laqw/edit?usp=sharing
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