The artwork for ‘The Ecologies of Hilbre Island’

'The Ecologies of Hilbre Island'
Mixed media (2024)
by Luciana Hermida

The artwork I created to promote the event ‘The Ecologies of Hilbre Island - A Creative Expedition’ (Being Human Festival 2024) consists of an image of radiolaria on the background (screen printed) and on top, digital layers of photographs and mixed media artworks I created to represent the geology of the island. The concept behind this image lies in the interconnectedness of the visible and invisible, the unseen aspects of nature (radiolaria are single celled marine organisms) and the aspects we can easily see (the rock formations, the ground, the water).

The experience I am planning for the 9th of November, will entail an exploration of what we can see and what we think and feel about the island. Radiolaria represents not only the unseen to the naked eye, but also the essential, a minuscule part in the vast interactions of the ocean. There are many shapes of radiolaria but I have chosen a radial one (called Collodaria) as it represents a whole, the union of things. This whole, from my perspective, is what unites us - our feelings and thoughts about nature. We think and feel differently about nature but the common denominator is that is inherent to human condition. We are alive. We can feel and see nature in many ways, that’s undeniable.

The experience on the 9th of November will enable the existence of a space for wonder, for shared experience and exchange of knowledge.