Plasticosis, Erik Jon Olson

Around 8 million pieces of plastic end up in our oceans each and every day. And those pieces of plastic end up in the guts of seabirds. The ingested plastic scars the birds’digestive tracts, making it impossible for the them to absorb nutrients. Scientists at the Natural History Museum in London have named this phenomenon “plasticosis.” 1

In this exhibit, Erik’s art addresses not just the scarring of seabirds’ digestive tracts but also the scarring that plastic waste has caused on our entire ecosystem. Erik uses quilted plastic waste as a direct metaphor for the effects plastic has on wildlife, as we see in Bird Feeder, SPLASH! and Navigating the Gallows. He also uses it as an indirect metaphor for human consumption’s scarring impact on climate change as in Harvey, Maria, Ian and Katrina, Thwaites Won’t Wait and Heatwave.

Erik’s art challenges us to reexamine our relationship with plastic, in particular, and mass consumption in general; to reevaluate how much stuff we really need, use and waste; and to recommit to doing something about it.