Susie Cowan and Emily Miller – Undersea Gardens

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About the Exhibit
Susie Cowan and Emily Miller are artists inspired by the sea.  Both are preserving and protecting our oceans’ environments by revealing the sea life in diverse styles and materials.

Day Island is part of an Octopus Preserve. Many divers come to photograph the creatures which live on the wall just off the Island (including Jacques Cousteau!) Susie exclaims “Last year I was rewarded with three up close and personal encounters with octopuses (not octopi), during super low tide beach walks. Two were Giant Pacific Octopuses in their lairs and one was a small Red Octopus out hunting in a tide pool. Last year I saw a Giant Pacific Octopus meet his fate in the jaws of a sea lion and another picked off by a seagull. I listened to the sounds of life revealed at low tide, I smelled the salt air, and was endlessly enchanted by the beauty and the wonder of this planet.”

Susie Cowan intuitively uses a variety of colors and techniques to achieve various patterns and textures. Some of her effects are made with waxed paper, Kleenex, monotypes, powdered charcoal, and Venetian Plaster. Most of the pieces in this exhibition have been dipped into a marbling bath one or two times. Susie explains, After the initial layer “… I figure out who wants to live in that space and how to bring him/her out through layers of negative and positive painting. The photos I’ve taken guide me with imagery and allows my imagination to go wild.”

Emily Miller focuses on two mediums in this exhibit: weaving, and porcelain ceramics. The baskets in this exhibition are called Ghost Net Baskets. These are aptly named for they are made of fishing nets that are discarded by fishermen. Ghost nets are part of the global problem of unsustainable fishing practices. Thousands of tons of plastic fishing lines and netting are added to the marine environment each year. After the fisherman cut and release the nets into the sea, the plastic materials continue to float in the ocean currents. The lines and rope entangle marine wildlife, damage reefs, and harm and/or kill sea life. Birds, Turtles, fish, seals, sea lions, and large whales are greatly affected.