The Territorial Council of Saint Barth&eacute;lemy, Art Saint Barth joined forces with Parley for the Oceans, the nonprofit environmental organization, to present a one-of-a-kind Art for Our Oceans program this winter in St Barth to raise Global awareness for the climate crisis, and to highlight the beauty and fragility of this blue planet.

Every second breath you take is generated by the oceans. We all depend on the oceans&mdash;they play a vital role in sustaining the health of all life&mdash;on land and in the seas and without them, we simply would not exist. And at this moment nine out of ten pieces of trash in the ocean are plastic.
As the climate crisis accelerates, and countries are feeling first-hand the warm temperatures at the peak of winter, we as a society are faced with questions of what can we do to help?
Art Saint Barth, the cultural association founded by Philippe Combres and Jenny Mannerheim, joined forces with Parley for the Oceans, the nonprofit environmental organization, to present a one-of-a-kind Art for Our Oceans program this winter in St Barth to raise Global awareness for the climate crisis, and to highlight the beauty and fragility of this blue planet.

Art Saint Barth x Parley will unveil American artist and filmmaker Doug Aitken&rsquo;s new edition of the Underwater Pavilions in St Barth, to highlight the ecology of the island, along with a curated contemporary art exhibition at the historical Wall House Museum in Gustavia.
The program has been created with the support of The Territorial Council (la Collectivit&eacute; de Saint-Barth&eacute;lemy) and in partnership with The Territorial Environment Agency (L&rsquo;Agence Territoriale de l&rsquo;Environnement). The Art for Our Oceans benefit auction of contemporary art at the end of December 2022 will raise funds for the collaborating environmental organizations for their work with the environment and ocean preservation in St Barth.

WHEN I DOVE INTO THE OCEAN TO EXPERIENCE THIS WORK, AND SWAM INTO THE WORK, WHAT I SAW WAS MORE UNREAL THAN ANYTHING I COULD EVER IMAGINE IN THE DIGITAL WORLD. -- DOUG AITKEN

A collaboration between American artist Doug Aitken and Cyrill Gutsch, Parley&rsquo;s founder &amp; CEO, and fabricated by Rossinavi, the Underwater Pavilions are both aesthetic and scientific and put the local marine environment and the global challenges around ocean conservation into dialogue with the history of art, inviting the viewer to write a contemporary narrative of the ocean and to participate in its protection.
As the artist and filmmaker Doug Aitken says, &ldquo;We&rsquo;re at a crossroads as a society right now. And we&rsquo;re straddling the space between the physical world and the digital world, and how much time we spend on screens absorbing images and information. And the counterpoint to that is looking outside at the physical world, taking a walk, touching the soil, walking through a forest. In many ways, the Underwater Pavilions are an offering to return to the real.&rdquo; Underwater Pavilions consists of three temporary sculptures that are moored to the ocean floor. Geometric in design, the sculptures create environments that reflect and refract&nbsp;light, opening a portal that physically connects the viewer to the expanse of the ocean while simultaneously disrupting preconceived visual ideas of the aquatic world. By merging the language of contemporary architecture, land art, and ocean research, the Underwater Pavilions are a living artwork within a vibrant ecosystem.
As Aitken affirms, &ldquo;It&rsquo;s really asking the viewer to step into a space which is a physical and natural ecosystem, and to make this your own experience. When I dove into the ocean to experience this work, and swam into the work, what I saw was more unreal than anything I could ever imagine in the digital world. It felt so heightened and strange. My senses were activated and there&rsquo;s a sense that you&rsquo;re completely in the present. You&rsquo;re engaged only in what is in front of you. I think that that&rsquo;s a very, very valuable quality to have in today&rsquo;s world.&rdquo; In contrast to areas of the sculpture that have a rough and rock-like surface, mirrored sections reflect the seascape and, when approached, activate to become a kaleidoscopic

The environments created by the sculptures change and adjust with the currents and time of day, focusing the viewer&rsquo;s attention on the rhythm of the ocean and its life cycles. The artwork creates a variety of converging perceptual encounters that play with the fluidity of time and space, resulting in a heightened awareness of the physical world.
The work operates as an observatory for ocean life, creating a variety of converging perceptual encounters. The sculptures will continuously change due to the natural and manmade conditions of the ocean, creating a living presence and unique relationship with the viewer.
The new edition of the Underwater Pavilions was fabricated by the Italian superyacht company, Rossinavi.
In December 2022, the new Underwater Pavilions will be installed in the Baie de St Jean, close to Eden Rock - St Barths and open for public to visit.

Art For Our Oceans

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