Mandy Barker’s camera zooms in on the plastic and pollution in our oceans

The ‘Shelf-Life’, by UK-based photographer Mandy Barker, features plastic litter collected from Henderson Island, a UNESCO World Heritage Site in the South Pacific Ocean. It captures turtles weaving their way around a ton of plastic to make their way out of the ocean; Birds removing plastic from their nests; and endemic flora waste with plastic bottles and single-use items in one of the most isolated and uninhabited places in the world. Plastic litter from 25 countries, including 45 recognizable brands and logos, traveled more than 5,000 kilometers to reach the coast of Henderson Island.

Shelf Life is one of 40 photographs featured in Barker’s first solo show in India – Invasion of the Seas – which was on display at the Goa Center for the Arts, Panaji, which opened on 8 December. “It was really shocking,” recalls Barker, 57. Who went on a visit to Henderson Island with scientists in 2019. Growing up in Hull, a port on England’s east coast, Barker reveals, “It was my personal experience of finding plastic on my local shoreline that first bothered me.” As a child, she used to walk on the beach collecting natural objects such as stones and driftwood. But, as time passed he saw more man-made waste.

Barker has been part of several scientific expeditions as she is invited to document plastic waste found in remote locations. He believes that his photographs help speak about the issue and also reflect scientific research. “An artist and a scientist have opposing approaches to the work, but somehow trying to achieve the same result,” she says. “My work can help give science a ‘visual voice’, while hopefully engaging with the social conscience of the audience.”

Over the past decade, she has accompanied many scientists to distant regions, from the Pacific to Japan. However, for him, the trip to Henderson Island was one of the most difficult, as he took seven days to reach there – climbing coral reefs, carrying heavy equipment in waist-high seawater, trekking in the jungle and sleeping in a cave. The litter he collected thereafter, be it fishing buoys, footballs and other plastic objects, has now been used in his photographs to make a major commentary on marine plastic pollution.

Meanwhile in Goa

Plastic pollution is a real issue in Goa where this exhibition is being held, right in the midst of peak tourism season. According to a 2017 report by the Kochi-based Central Marine Fisheries Research Institute (CMFRI), Goa’s 100-km coastline produces 41 kg of beach litter per capita, the highest in the country. Each square meter of beach sand contains 25.5 grams of plastic waste.

After studying the coast of Goa for nearly a decade, Pooja Mitra of the conservation enterprise Terra Conscious took stock of the situation. “In Goa, beach cleaning does not extend to the river mouth areas. A shack or small hotel is not linked to suppliers to replace their single-use plastics,” she says. “The state government has not instituted an award to recognize businesses that have taken environmentally conscious steps. As well as individual action, because of the scale of the problem, we also need structured intervention. ,

Beach wreck art by Tamsin Noronha