Seaweed is so much more than a resource we can break down into its many exploitable parts for our benefit. It is one of the millions of companion co-species with which we share the planet and which contribute to the health of the planet - and therefore to ours. Inspired by the concept 'collaborative survival' (mooted by anthropologist Anna Tsing), I combine washed up seaweed with other waste materials in an 'intricate interplay' (Nan Shepherd). I aim to highlight our interdependency and offer a different way of experiencing seaweed and our relationship to the natural world - of which humans are just a part.
LIfeline was on show in Kirkudbright Museum & Gallery until 4 June and has now sold. Unlikely Kin is going on show in Summerhall Edinburgh in the John Byrne Award exhibition - June 21-July 4 2023.
Thanks to prize money from the Centre for Entrepreneurship Dundee, I have set up design business called TANG (an old Scots word for seaweed). There is a separate website here - www.tangscot.com