Every summer, green algae covers the beaches of Bretagne. Every summer, backhoe loaders and lorries are busy clearing it away. The accumulation of seaweed on beaches is caused by industrial livestock farming practices that release large quantities of nitrates into the soil and waterways. Cleaning beaches, sometimes on a daily basis, reduces the risk of poisoning by hydrogen sulphide (H2S) formed when seaweed decomposes. By cleaning up, we also make the questions raised by the presence of algae disappear: before appearing on beaches, where does this pollution come from? What are the impacts of intensive farming and stockbreeding on landscapes? How can we rethink the relationship between our agricultural model and the environment? In Bretagne, a silence has formed around these issues. By weaving a beach towel, Les marées puts these questions back into the landscape. The colours of the beach towel pattern are obtained by dyeing the cotton with seaweed pigments that react to light and gradually disappear with exposure to the sun. The narrative nature of the weaving allows the telling of a story to be initiated, while creating a physical space for dialogue.
Project developped in collaboration with Laboratorium.
les marées