Jenny Owens
The Seas Within Us, 2022, digital video with 26 images without sound. 02,36 minutos, Work shown as part of The Earth Rising Eco Festival in the Irish Museum of Modern Art, (IMMA), October 2022.
Sometimes by showing something common, something that we may even take for granted, and presenting it in a new way, provides us with the chance to see the object in question in a new light. In the case of "The Seas Within Us", this is the sea. By inverting the images and displaying the sea in a different way, the work aims to hold the viewer´s attention to contemplate the remarkable way in which waves are formed and how no two waves are ever the same.
The seas are directly affected by climate change. Sea levels are rising as a result of ice sheets and glaciers melting. This is putting future generations of people, species and lands in great danger. The images are intentionally ambiguous to show the connection between sea, ice and snow and to underline these dangers.
The title, "The Seas Within Us", alludes to the fact that we are all responsible for our planet. What we see externally becomes internalized. Images then take on a new form inside of us. In these internal spaces we can reflect on and imagine how we would like the outer world to be and use these ideas to propel us forward and make the changes we would like to see externally.