This illustrated piece was for the Mail Me Art project in 2019. llustrators and artists around the globe create an artwork on the back of a card or envelope that responds to a theme. It then gets posted, and once everyone's work is received (sometimes not all make it) there is an exhibition and a book printed. The theme for their most recent call-out was 'Apocalypse'.
The work below features two gannet birds. The mother thinks she's feeding her chick something nourishing but sadly it's a plastic lid from a softdrink bottle. Plastic rubbish is all too common on beaches and other natural spaces. Man-made objects that have a lifespan which outlive you or I and end up polluting the habitats of others. Not only does plastic and other waste harm wildlife, but the sheer amounts of it that are shipped to other countries and end up in the ocean highlights how much packaged products we are consuming. Replacing single-use plastic with an alternative material is not enough. Just how much rubbish will it take for us to reduce our consumption?
Gouache and ink marker on kraft paper envelope
