In honor of African Ancestors who were thrown overboard the slave ships during the Middle Passage of the African Holocaust.
Nah, actually, these are underwater sculptures, the works of one-Jason Taylor called “Vicissitudes”. Still though, kinda awesome!
I’m not 100% sure but I believe it was revealed that the (white) person behind these sculptors had a different reason for creating this, something about global warming as opposed to honouring those Africans who were cruelly killed during the Middle Passage.
Really? How did you know that a white person was behind these sculptures. I didn’t even think to check on that since I got it from a comrade on facebook. And you’ll have to explain the ‘something’ about global warming part….I’m not sure I understand that reference.
Respectfully
A
A while ago there was a post going around on Tumblr addressing this. Apparently someone on Tumblr discovered the person behind the sculptures was white, there was some discomfort with the idea of a white person creating this in honour of African ancestors so they dug around a bit only to learn that it in fact was not created for this purpose.
As for “something” about global warming….well the “something” I added because I wrote the comment as I thought it out in my mind but if you’re wondering about the original reason behind these sculptures it would be in reference to the rising coastal lines. I guess the person behind this imagined humans submerged under the rising water levels which would be due to global warming.
I have also seen this with the same caption but Tumblr has a way of debunking things, there is always someone with the time to reveal truths on there. It will be impossible to find the post that revealed the reason behind the sculptures on Tumblr but I will try searching around Google. If/when I find it, I will leave a link here.
Oh! It wasn’t so difficult to find a reference on these sculptures. It turns out the person behind the sculptures is English, born to a Guyanese mother and a British father, Jason deCaires Taylor. So he is not white.
Now for the reason behind the underwater sculptures. The one in the image above is called “Vicissitudes” in which “Taylor has used 30 life-size moulds taken of children of diverse ethnic background. It is placed five meters below the surface and symbolises the cycle of life and unity” (read more here). No mention of honouring African ancestors…
And as for the “something” about global warming, it is actually not to do with rising sea levels but with reefs. “For Grenada, this has resulted in a series of beautiful marine seascapes that have formed a series of artificial reefs, drawing new life into areas which have been damaged by nature’s raw power and mans intervention… Jason is keen to engage local people, particularly children, in his work to build a direct relationship with and understanding of their own precious natural resource…Located across an expansive underwater area the work draws marine life to a zone that has suffered substantial and sustained storm damage. The direction and strengths of currents mean that entire sections of the work become covered, hidden and lost”. (from here
For more about the underwater sculptures, also see here and here.
And there you have it. I don’t know, maybe I should have kept quiet and not pointed this out?
Thanks for providing those the links about the underwater sculptures. No, you are SO right to point it out. I’m a truth seeker and can appreciate it to the upmost. However, that wont stop me from ‘striking through’ the error and correcting it because nonetheless I can still appreciate the artwork and creativity this photography.
^^; You’re welcome!
Haha, it’s hard for me to appreciate underwater sculptures, not for any other reason than being groomed on stories of “evil” mermaids when I was a little girl. So, I find them creepy tbh, even though I can acknowledge the creativity in them n_n
Of course my feelings would have been entirely different if the sculptures had really been made with African ancestors in mind.
My apologies cosmicyoruba, somehow your comment got swept in the spam bin. I completely agree…that would have defefinitely 1+ if it had been made with African ancestors in mind.
Lol@your evil mermaid* complex. that’s too funny.
I’d just like to point out that thee guy who did these sculptures has done a whole range of different ones, theres a guy on a couch and a VW beetle. I think it’s all about creating Artificial reefs out of Art. Here’s the link http://www.underwatersculpture.com/ Great blog Nikki!
Thanks for providing the link. Yes, I understand these to be artificial reefs. I love these sculptures and especially the Photography. I think I saw many other scenes of this sculpture on tumblr. Marine life is already growing around it and over it. Quite a sight! And thanks Phil, It’s a work in progress, I hope to redesign in the near future.
The previous comment was made by me Nikki but for some reason my wordpress settings were over-riding