‘Warning Signals’ is an installation composed of a large-scale digital print alongside a heat-activated 3D print of an ocean quahog shell. It was developed for ‘STING’, a two-part exhibition with ZEST Collective exploring artistic responses to themes of resilience, creative survival, and the emotional impact of rejection.

This artwork is attending to the ocean quahog shell, a unique natural archive and warning signal for rapid environmental changes amidst a global climate emergency. Each layer of this shell reveals a consistent annual measurement of conditions in the North Atlantic Ocean spanning hundreds of years. In recent years, the shell’s changes in growth indicates a loss of stability in our ocean systems. This a warning signal for urgent action, but it is also an opening, a chance to reconsider our agency to make change during times when control appears limited and to attune with our planet from a place of creativity, curiosity, and care.