'Watersurface', an exhibition dedicated to sea pollution

An octopus playing with a football, Photo: procida2022.com

 PROCIDA – The island is hosting a photo exhibition entitled "Watersurface" devoted to the unnatural relationship between marine organisms and waste.

 The pollution of the sea and of the oceans is the theme of three internationally renowned artists’ work - Nicholas Samaras, Pasquale Vassallo and Guido Villani, who are specialised in underwater photography. The intention of the artists is to condemn the dangerous coexistence of rubbish and marine animals.

 Underwater images depict the presence of waste in the marine ecosystem. Among the images is an octopus playing with a football, a jellyfish that captures the chocolate bar wrapping, and also a seahorse dragging a mask with its tail. Three meters high illustrations will be presented at the quay of the port of Chiaiolella. Various photographs in the exhibition tell of the pollution of the Gulf of Naples. The exhibition includes a pro-ecological message to protect the marine environment and the entire planet.

 "With our shots, taken around the world, we tell the daily risks that marine species run due to humans, and our impact with the hope that the resilience of some species does not reduce our sense of responsibility towards the environment,” said Pasquale Vassallo, awarded with the ‘Plongeur d'Or’ in Marseille in 2011 and ‘The Underwater Photographer of the Year’ Marine Conservation in London in 2020.

 The aim of the exhibition is to raise awareness on pollution, which is an often-underestimated issue. "By 2025 the oceans will contain one ton of plastic for every three tons of fish and by 2050 there will be more plastic than fish,” explains Agostino Riitano, director of Procida 2022. He also refers to the research 'Beach Litter' carried out by Legambiente, which found the Mediterranean has approximately 670 pieces of rubbish every 100m of the coastline. Plastic represents 95% of waste in the open sea. Therefore, 134 species of fish, turtles, birds and marine mammals are victims of plastic ingestion.

 The "Watersurface" exhibition was organised as a part of Procida Italian Capital of Culture 2022’s program. The exhibition is open from Aug 4 to Dec 31 on the Marina Chiaiolella pier.

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