University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign

Surface Tensions – Fieldwork Reflections on the Commodification of the Ocean

O'Neill, Brian

Content Files
O'Neill_Brian F..jpg

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https://hdl.handle.net/2142/114270

Description

Title
Surface Tensions – Fieldwork Reflections on the Commodification of the Ocean
Author(s)
O'Neill, Brian
Issue Date
2022
Keyword(s)
Department of Sociology
Date of Ingest
2022-06-01T16:57:50Z
Abstract
As an environmental sociologist, the key challenge of my work is to bring nature and human beings into conversation. My artistic practice has helped me dive beneath the surface tensions between social groups and our natural world. This piece was constructed out of photographs I made during one year of fieldwork in California. This image reflects the politics of seawater desalination, the process of transforming the ocean into potable water. Coastal cities must contend with the question of how to justly produce water for its growing populations in the context of climate change. Like the research process itself, I have folded and shaped my experiences to create a tableau that expresses the multiple stakes of the issue: the commodification of the ocean, recreation, tourism, technology, pollution, and social inequality in the access to water. I created this mixed media portrait with photographic gels, construction paper, water, money, archival documents, and photographic prints of my research. The materiality of water is also present, as it reflects and cuts through this pressing environmental justice issue.
Type of Resource
  • Text
  • Image
Language
eng
Permalink
http://hdl.handle.net/2142/114270
Copyright and License Information
Copyright 2022 Brian O'Neill

Owning Collections

Image of Research - Graduate Students PRIMARY