Chris Levine has collaborated with the Convex Seascape Survey to create an immersive artwork that delves underwater and introduces viewers to the lesser-known role that the ‘Benthic Zone’ plays in the health of our oceans.
The crucial role of the ocean in understanding climate behaviour and marine biodiversity is often overlooked. Following a visit to the Convex Seascape Survey research laboratories at the University of Exeter, and the National Oceanography Centre, Southampton to learn more about the Benthic Zone, I knew the work had to encourage humankind to let the ocean rest. Let it be. When immersed in 7.83 Hertz, you can feel and hear the continuous work of the ocean, but it encourages you to slow down and celebrate its ability to protect us now and in generations to come.
Chris Levine,
Titled ‘7.83 Hertz,’ and timed for World Ocean Day on Saturday, June 8th, Levine’s installation spotlights the mysteries of how the ocean’s continental shelves, sedimentary seafloor and the creatures therein, form part of the slow carbon cycle, and play a vital role in the global ecosystem.
This echoes the work of the Convex Seascape Survey – a pioneering, five-year, multi-million dollar research initiative spearheaded by ocean conservation charity Blue Marine Foundation, University of Exeter and Convex Group Limited. Led by a team of experts, the project aims to harness nature’s hidden superpower in helping combat climate change by uncovering the ocean’s potential as a carbon sink. It will deliver new, reliable open-source data which will educate, inspire and enable informed decisions on ocean use.
7.83 Hertz
Known for his avant-garde exploration of light and perception, Levine’s latest work immerses individuals in an atmospheric zone of blue light, beneath the ‘water line,’ and is intersected by a vertical ‘blipvert.’ The work illuminates aspects of this strange, subaquatic netherworld, and takes people on an underwater journey of a Convex Seascape Survey marine biologist researching the critical area of carbon sequestration. Entitled 7.83 Hertz- a frequency also known as the Schumann Resonance and often referred to as the heartbeat of the Earth – Levine’s artwork encapsulates how all natural living processes, including the ocean, are connected, and harmonise together for an optimum healthy state.
Over centuries humans have created harmful disturbances to the ocean and the seafloor. Once a bountiful underwater garden, the ocean floor has been dramatically altered since the advent of mechanical fishing, in particular bottom trawling, which indiscriminately scrapes the seafloor, destroying entire ecosystems, and disturbing what carbon has been stored there. Chris’ unique artwork highlights the precious nature of the ocean floor as a critical resource in the fight against climate change. The Convex Seascape Survey is delighted to see our scientific research into the ocean’s role as a carbon sink brought to life so beautifully through this immersive artwork. Importantly, this partnership will help raise awareness of the need to protect the ocean and let it rest, so it can continue to be enjoyed and sustained.
Gabriella Gilkes, Programme Manager, Convex Seascape Survey
At the forefront of laser technology, the blue ‘water line’ sited around the totality of the space, is designed to create a sense of being beneath the ocean. Viewers will experience imagery ‘swimming’ in and out of their field of vision and activating their subconscious awareness for this little-known submarine world. Immersing people even further, there will be sounds of the moving sea throughout.
Meanwhile, the vertical ‘blipvert’ is inspired by the methodology of scientific investigation into what lies beneath the water column, such as core samples and glass tubes that show transections of the ocean floor and the activity of bioturbation. Chris collaborated with soundscape collaborator Marco Perry to create the installation.
It has been very inspiring following Chris Levine’s creative journey inspired by the Convex Seascape Project, as he immersed himself in the Project’s scientific exploration of the marine Benthic Zone. Consistently innovative in his practice, he has created this series of sublime and mind-opening new works. The collaboration between a virtuoso light artist inventing new ways of seeing, with marine science at the forefront of scientific research, reveals itself as an important legacy project for the future.
Lisa Samos, Art Consultant, Blue Marine Foundation
Experience it for yourself
The artwork will be available for public viewing in Chris Levine’s studio in Mayfair from Monday, 10th June to Thursday, 4th July by appointment only. It will then travel to further destinations for the public to experience – exact locations and dates to be announced.
5A Shepherd St, London W1J 7HW 10th June – 4th July 2024, Monday – Thursday, 10am – 5pm
* Please email studio@chrislevine.com to book your appointment.
