catch-of-the-day at PIF2014

"catch of the day" or "floating polke-dots" is part of pangkor island festival 2014 (PIF2014) bringing art, awareness and action to this small on the west coast of malaysia. the installation is made entirely from waste found on beaches of the island. the artist liina klauss is raising awareness for the problem of marine pollution. "most of the waste comes from residents themselves" liina says, "and this is not a problem that only exists on pangkor: this is a global problem and it has taken on horrifying proportions."

with the help of pangkor residents as well as volunteers from all over asia, liina has been cleaning-up beaches on the island to find materials needed for floating her installation. "we bought nothing to make the art piece" one of the volunteers says,"all is taken from the beach or borrowed by the neighbours!" the process of making art from nothing brings people into direct contact with pollution like marine debris. by collecting found materials, cleaning them, sorting them by colour and transforming them into an installation see, touch and experience a problem physically. as liina says: "what you touch, touches you", meaning that by physically helping to clean-up change is happening not only on the outside, but also on the inside. this said, the art-making process is an integral part of the installation and as important as the result itself. by integrating the local community the residents come in direct contact with the effects of their behaviour and the impact it has on nature, on wildlife and on the community. 

during an artist talk held during her one week stay on pangkor island, liina shared facts about marine pollution and her environmental activism, giving residents a chance to grasp the consequences and global dimensions of marine pollution. liina's art encourages people to deal with problems in a creative and collaborative way. "seeing and recognizing the problem is the first step towards taking action!" liina says. 
(text taken from the press release for PIF2014)

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