Plastic Seas is a collaboration between Susana Sanroman and Maria Jose Arceo that will be addressing the impact of waste on our environment though a combination of performance collaboration, film projections and a fund-raising event for Cancer Research & the eXXpedition’s education package program that has been included in the Spain Now! 2015 Festival’s program of events and endorsed & promoted by ArtCOP21 “Visual Arts and Exhibitions”
María José Arceo will present a documentary film by Jennifer Pate on Atlantic “eXXpedition” 2014: “An all women voyage to make the unseen seen – from the plastics in our oceans to the toxics in our bodies.”
The film documents “eXXpedition” 2014 – the journey of 14 women (scientists, designers, filmmakers, marine biologists, environmental advocates and Maria as the boat’s official artist in residence) who last November sailed across the Ocean on a scientific mission sampling themselves and the Atlantic for micro plastics and persistent toxic pollutants in our bodies and the ocean’s environment.
‘’Our mission is to explore the issue of plastics, chemicals, endocrine disruptors and carcinogens in our personal and global environment that can cause disease. Our aim is to engage women in scientific narratives relating to the consumer choices they make, and their long-term health impacts on themselves and our environment”.
The samples collected during the trip were first analyzed on board and then fed to range of international research projects that investigate the impacts of toxics and plastics pollutants linked to narratives of ecosystem health, personal health and the products we consume: The Marine Litter Watch (UN Environmental Agency); UN Safe Planet Campaign (UNEP); SECCHI Phytoplankton Disk Project (Plymouth University); Marine Environmental Research Institute MERI (Maine USA) and MTM Research Centre (Örebro University, Sweden).
Spain NOW! is an annual Festival of Spanish Culture in London that showcases the latest creative talent coming from Spain and the spanish community in London. The Festival takes place all around London and strives to break traditional geographical barriers in as much as cultural consumption in the capital is concerned.
ArtCOP21 is a global festival of cultural activity on climate change taking place during the United Nations Conference on Climate Change (COP21). ArtCop21 was launched ahead of the UN climate talks in Paris, connecting hundreds of thousands of people to the issues of climate challenge through an extensive global programme of over 290 major events; art installations, plays, exhibitions, concerts, performances, talks, conferences, workshops, family events and screenings taking place right across Paris and worldwide.
Cover image © Susana Sanroman’s still image from video ‘The Things We Leave Behind’
————
‘PLASTIC SEAS’
María José Arceo (+ eXXpedition) & Susana Sanromán
SpainNOW 201 + ARTCOP21
Date: Sunday 22nd of November 2015, 10.00 – 13.30h
Venue: The Hospital Club, 24 Endell St, London WC2H 9HQ
Free tickets: RSVP: thehospitalclub@spain-now.org.uk