While humanity continues to consume more and more and our planet and oceans warm, plastic packaging in our oceans is growing at an alarming rate. There are positive steps underway to reduce and clean up, but the problem persists. What happens in the future to our fish and sea mammals? And consequently what happens to us as fish our part of a large interconnected ecosystem and food chain? This project explores a near dystopian future, where plastic and fish merge and mutate.
Project
Mutant Fish
Prints · Activism
Design Problem
While humanity continues to consume more and more and our planet and oceans warm, plastic packaging in our oceans is growing at an alarming rate. There are positive steps underway to reduce and clean up, but the problem persists. This project explores a near dystopian future, where plastic and fish merge and mutate.
Research Question
What happens in the future to our fish and sea mammals? And consequently what happens to us as fish our part of a large interconnected ecosystem and food chain?
What can I do as a designer to raise alarm about microplastics in our land, water, and food supply?
Outcomes
The ongoing Mutant Fish series combined digital collages of plastic photography and fish engravings to create a not so tongue-in-cheek visualization of our current and worsening issue with plastic in our oceans and waterways. The images are printed on handmade recycled cotton fiber and local prairie grass paper from my Fresh Press Agri-Fiber Lab. Each are framed in reused frames found at Goodwill or other resale stores.
Credits
Designer/Illustrator - Eric Benson
Group Exhibitions
- Paper, Paper, Paper
- Regather: A 10-Year Retrospective of Paper Art at Fresh Press