This watercolor is a part of the collaborative environmental project by Helen Klebesadel and Mary Kay Neumann entitled: The Flowers Are Burning: An Art and Climate Justice Project. It can be seen here: https://www.theflowersareburning.com
“Gimme Shelter: Coral in Crises Series”
Collaborative Watercolor by Mary Kay Neumann and Helen Klebesadel 22x30
“One quarter of all ocean life depends on the tiny animals that are coral reefs. And they are cooking to death.
“Hidden from view, under the ocean waves, an alarm is going off in glowing color. It’s a warning as devastating as it is beautiful….one we can’t afford to ignore. In a desperate attempt to survive the increasing underwater heat waves caused by the 93% climate-change heat that is absorbed by the ocean, corals produce vibrantly colored chemicals that act as sunscreens to protect themselves from the heat. It is as if the corals are screaming in color; the ultimate warning that the ocean is in trouble.
“We often forget that the Ocean sustains all life on Earth. And few people understand that it is as complex and vulnerable as the human body—even a small change in temperature or chemistry causes vital systems to start shutting down. This is why we should be alarmed when corals start ‘glowing’; this is the indicator of system failure for planet Earth. For the first time in human history, we’re witnessing the collapse of a global-scale ecosystem—coral reefs."
– Richard Vevers, Founder and CEO of The Ocean Agency
Our Series: Coral in Crises is our collaborative translation of the Ocean’s warning through vivid coloring of corals in their last gasp of coral fluorescence before dying.
- Subject Matter: nature, surreal
- Inventory Number: C1-106
- Collections: The Flowers Are Burning collaborative exhibition with Mary Kay Neumann