Reflection

Reflection

What really threatens the ocean? The animals that live in it and call it home, or is it us who mindlessly throw toxins in it. When I first heard the prompt I already knew I wanted to use oil spills, however I didn’t know exactly what my subject would be. I wanted to use something I knew well, something timeless that people could recognize. Then I remembered Moby Dick, the legendary white whale. I remember when I was little and I watched a cartoon on it I actually felt bad for the whale. I always wondered why he was furious with humans. Maybe humans started taking all his food, or killed his family off. I just always saw him as misunderstood, instead of a manifestation of evil that the characters in the book viewed him as. To me the humans in the story did more damage to the ocean, which connects back to the pollution topic. Almost all the issues on the contest list can trace back to human hands. Thus my idea was born, Moby Dick (who symbolizes nature) vs. Pollution. I decided to use a dark oil spill to contrast with the whale’s pure white skin, to create a grimmer look. I was inspired by some vintage illustrations for the composition. In the border I also tied marine debris in with pictures of fish bones and factories. The message on the piece is to evoke responsibility for the ocean’s destruction, and change in our actions.