The US Department of State Presents: A Whirling Porcelain Coral Reef Draws Attention to the Cost of Climate Change

With a mission of cross-cultural exchange, Art in Embassies curators work with ambassadors to create temporary exhibitions for the representational spaces of US embassy residences. Exhibitions coincide with an ambassadors’ term and, as with AIE collections, AIE exhibitions are intended to serve as tools of cultural diplomacy.

This installation is a celebration of Indonesia’s coral reefs, while also pinpointing the human-caused damage that infects the vibrant systems. “Corals, anemones, sponges and other reef-dwelling invertebrates coalesce into a cyclone-like spiral with colorful healthy corals at the eye of the storm, their tentacles and branches dancing in the current,” explains Courtney Mattison. “Toward the edges and tail of the swirling constellation, corals sicken and bleach, exposing their sterile white skeletons — a specter of what could be lost from climate change. Yet at its heart the reef remains healthy, resilient and harmonious.”

Indonesia is located at the heart of what is called the “Coral Triangle” or “Amazon of the Sea.” This environment is host to more invertebrate species than can be found anywhere else on the planet, in addition to thousands of species of fish which thrive in the rich ecosystem. Mattison hopes that her handmade constructions of the Coral Triangle’s diverse specimens produces an excitement in viewers while sparking an interest to protect the delicate balance found in Indonesia’s coral systems.

Mattison exhibited another recent installation titled Afterglow (Our Changing Seas VI) in the group show curated by Barbara Matilsky, at the Whatcom Museum in Bellingham, Washington which ended January 6, 2019. Mattison traveled to Bali  to unveil a 60-foot-long community-based coral installation she designed for the Coral Triangle Center in Sanur, Bali titled Semesta Terumbu Karang—Coral Universe. The work features over 2000 elements sculpted by a team of over 300 volunteers, coral reef conservationists, and Balinese artisans. You can see further conservation-based projects by Mattison on her website and Instagram.

Other online exhibitions:

https://art.state.gov/exhibitions-a/