PUBLISHED May 14th, 2014 01:00 am | UPDATED January 20th, 2016 02:40 pm
Mother Earth: Fragile, beautiful, awe-inspiring. From the beginning of time, she has exerted her power and fury, and since our population of the planet, has connected with humans in the most incredible of ways. It is this fascinating relationship that six projects produced under an artist residency programme at the Earth Observatory of Singapore sought to explore in the exhibition UNEARTHED, currently on show at the Singapore Art Museum.
The six projects: Coastline, Lupang, Sound of the Earth, Sudden Nature, The Possibility of Knowing and When Need Moves the Earth are inspired by earth science, earth hazards and humans living in hazardous areas to quite magnificent visual effect.
Take for instance, Lupang by Clara Balaguer and Carlos Casa, an eight-screen installation that portrays the life of the Ayta people, thought to be the earliest inhabitants of the Philippines. Displaced from their ancestral lands by the 1991 eruption of the Mount Pinatubo volcano, the installation tries to make sense of the causes behind the eruption, and possible solutions to the aftermath as we become voyeurs of everyday scenes
Then there is The Possibility of Knowing by Robert Zhao Tenhui which uncovers the before and after of a natural disaster in the Indonesian cities of Padang and Banda Aeh, examining the tension and fragility of landscapes in areas prone to such catastrophes, the tension of post-disaster desolation palpable in every frame.
On the flip side, When Need Moves The Earth by Sutthirat Supaparinya, explores what happens when we as humans, alter the course of nature, through commercial activities like mining or the creation of hydroelectric power. The result makes you catch your breath, as you witness man-made destruction and the consequences of our high consumption of electrical power in this video installation.
This may not be the easiest of exhibitions to take in, but is a thoughtful, poignant one that deserves attention, particularly at a time when the future of the Earth is very much in question. Come follow the artists in their travels throughout the region and witness the complex relationship of beauty and pain that binds us to Mother Earth.
UNEARTHED is exhibiting at Singapore Art Museum, SAM at 8Q until 6th July 2014.