*Precarious Straits exhibition
*‘Precarious Straits ~ survival on Southend’s new coast, Southend-under-Sea’
22 May - 12 September 2021
Group exhibition at TOMA Project Space, Unit 13, Royals Shopping Centre, Southend, SS1 1DG.
All images by Tessa Hallmann
Precarious straits exhibiting artists:
The ‘Precarious Straits…’ group exhibition is a manual for awareness and survival. It looks at the speculative economic, political and ecological futures we may have to navigate in a world heading towards climate chaos. It will open on Saturday 22 May from 12-6pm until 19th June. Associated workshops and talks will be held by our collaborators at The Old Waterworks.
Climate Central’s predictive map suggests that by 2050 rising sea levels will submerge coastal towns along the Thames Estuary. So, how do we deal with this harrowing prospect? Our artists have responded to these bleak realities through skill-sharing, critical thinking, myth-making, humour and careful collation. The question the exhibit asks is this: How do we work outside of capitalist doctrine, and work together, in the face of increasing precarity?
COVID 19 has exposed drastic inequalities throughout the whole of society, but these will only exacerbate further with the onset of rising sea levels and its effects. In many ways, artists have already adapted to surviving in uncertain circumstances. This exhibition shares some of the strategies developed from how they approach their life and work. Emma Edmondson, Jerome., Sophia Niazi and UNMundernewmanagement humorously critique institutions such as estate agents, casinos, and the office - each subverting the role of artists within society. James Ravinet documents the changing ecology of the Thames Estuary, while Sara Trillo and Adam Hogarth explore alternative histories and apocalyptic mythologies to arouse wonder and concern for the future. The shopping centre takes centre stage in video, performance and sculptural works by Lolly Adams and Louise Ashcroft while Amy Pennington + Sophie Chapman call on queer elders for wisdom. Eco-anxious artists Sean Roy Parker and Anna Crystal Stephens each share works using camping hacks and discarded materials to create survival gadgets and debris collages. Solidarity Syndicate, the right lube and Raju Rage demonstrate how we might collectively and compassionately mobilise in the future combining art, activism and academia.
As part of ‘Precarious Straits ~ survival on Southend’s new coast, Southend-under-Sea’, TOMA & TOW commissioned Rose Cleary, Holly Firmin, Zarina Muhammad, and Morgan Quaintance. You can access each text by clicking the links below:
> ‘I LIKE STONY BEACHES.’ ZARINA MUHAMMAD FROM THE WHITE PUBE <
> ‘PEOPLE’S REPUBLIC OF SOUTHEND’ BY HOLLY FIRMIN <
