WHALE FALLS
Whale Falls is a series of four hand-colored, single edition screen prints I created as part of my degree project in Printmaking at the Rhode Island School of Design. A whale fall is a rare natural phenomenon in which a whale dies and sinks to the bottom of the ocean. Its carcass becomes the site for a complex micro-ecosystem, transforming into a source of food and shelter for various marine life lasting decades after its death.
Water is a powerful symbol of movement and change that I associate with my Southeast Asian heritage and my family’s past, from the Khmer creation myth of a Brahmin and a Naga’s marriage ceremony under the sea, to the stories of boat people fleeing war. The whale fall, too, is a symbol of change, life after death and transformation.
"Remnants." Screenprint with gouache and colored pencil details. 22 in x 30 in. 2021.
"Deepsea Guardian." Screenprint with gouache and colored pencil details. 22 in x 30 in. 2021.
"Heavenly Bodies." Screenprint with gouache and colored pencil details. 22 in x 30 in. 2021.
"The Naga's Ascension." Screenprint with gouache and colored pencil details. 22 in x 30 in. 2021.
