Reading about the exploitation of the Native Oyster in the mid 1800s, the Forth Oyster Wars, and the final demise of the species here by about 1900, the story resonates far beyond this one catastrophe. The native oyster signifies a repeat phrase in man’s relationship with the resources of the earth. Taken for consumption, whether for the poor man’s supper or rich man’s banquet; the exquisite oyster, filter feeder, ecosystem engineer, pearl maker, is an organism of deep inspiration and it breaks the heart to know of this loss. I began to make drawings of the oyster; Rorschach blots as if to open and mirror the oyster shell, and touche wash stone lithographic experiments to achieve the reticulations expressed on their surface by time. Two dimensions didn’t seem to suffice though. To help restore the oyster, a ritual piece came to mind; to evoke the Newhaven Fishwife who might still be singing “Caller ou frae the Forth”. The Oyster Diviner walks the shoreline, gathering only shells from dead oysters, but willing the life of the ocean she knew to be restored by her runes.
Materials: Upcycled clothing, textiles, parasol, mask and fishing net; native oyster shells; Newhaven fishwife oyster basket on loan from the Heart of Newhaven
