Vera Möller’s Submarine Garden is installed and on display to the public at at Flinders Pier, curated by David Cross & Celia Mallard.
Submarine Gardens responds to the growths and constellations of sponges and seaweed attached to the piers wooden piles underwater. These carpet-like growths are expanding vertically all over the pylons and are fully visible in their intricacy and complexity only to divers and snorkelers. The purpose of the work is to draw attention to these stunning but relatively ‘secret’ sites and invert what’s going on below sea level to make the invisible visible. With this artwork Moller seeks to draw attention to the rich diversity of these exciting, living submarine communities that remain hidden from view for most of us.
“I am so sorry to hear of the threat to the habitat of the weedy sea dragon on the Mornington Peninsula, I do indeed think that it’s a most wonderful creature and if I find an opportunity to draw attention to the changes that threaten its survival, I will take them. Yours sincerely, David Attenborough”
Through her work Submarine Gardens, Vera Möller delivers on Sir Attenborough’s promise, drawing attention to Flinders Pier as a threatened habitat of the Weedy Seadragon. Whilst such a rich submarine ecosystem exists below sea level, so much remains hidden from general audiences, its splendour reserved for divers. Möller’s aim is to draw attention to such unique local underwater spaces and to make the invisible portion of Flinders pier visible to the visitor.
Vera Möller
Submarine Garden
4 – 27 November 2022 at Flinders Pier
