Beggiatoa

Suzette Bousema received a grant to develop new work. So-called “Dead Zones” are areas of the sea where oxygen is no longer available. Due to nutrient pollution from land and climate change, oxygen-depleted zones have increased tenfold in coastal areas since 1950. There are currently about 500 man-made dead zones in the world. As a visual landmark, Beggiatoa grows on the sea floor. The bacteria look like white cobwebs and this can appear grim, but actually the bacteria are helping the ecosystem get “better. It lives right on the border of oxygenlessness and where there is still just about oxygen in the water, creating a natural separation, a visual feature that tells you, “Here you are entering a dead zone.”

Suzette visualizes contemporary environmental themes in collaboration with scientists. Planetary conditions and our place in them are the starting point in her work; how humans affect nature and how we relate to the earth on an individual level. Through multimedia projects, she uses all senses to better understand ecological hyperobjects, such as climate change or global pollution. She works interdisciplinary with photography, graphics, glass, weaving, sound, smell and organic materials such as seaweed.