Trash Hero in the Antarctic

A recent trip to the southernmost waters of the World Ocean uncovers tons of rubbish and provides inspiration for a Trash Hero.

Trash Hero Czech Republic volunteer and artist, Veronika Podlasova, visited Nelson Island with the Czech Antarctic Research Programme in February this year, as one of a team of six who spent several weeks cleaning the snow and rocks of the plastic and other debris that had been swept in by ocean currents.

In total, they collected and audited 11 cubic metres – almost 6 metric tons! – of trash: a mix of plastics, metal, wood and hazardous waste such as batteries. All the rubbish was transported to Chile, where it was separated for recycling and safer disposal.

The whole experience was documented by Veronika, who has taken her notes, sketches, photographs and some organic material (discarded scientific samples) to create a series of artworks, including an installation. They will be shown at an exhibition in Prague this summer to educate and engage people on the issues of waste and climate change.

Below, she explains how her encounter with Antartica inspired her.

“Throughout my childhood, I was terrified of water. But all that changed when I saw my first glacier. When I stepped on the ground of King George Island. I stopped breathing for a bit. Everything was overwhelming, I had mixed feelings for several days. When I saw research stations and a human activity everywhere, I started to feel guilty for being there without scientific reason.

“While I cleared the substantial garbage and detritus off the beaches of Nelson Island, I felt the desire to document and to create what I saw even more. The trash was mainly from the fishing boats, tourist boats and of course from the surrounding continents. After work I used to go for wanders around the island. Seeing glaciers, seeing icebergs and seeing that beautiful blue void left a huge mark on my soul. I felt even more pressure to create an art piece that would evoke the same emotions as I had. I wanted to create an art piece that would wake people up to look after our planet better.”

“The Antarctic is a fabulous but extremely distant place for most of us. It’s hard to realise how fundamentally important it is for the balance and thriving of the planet’s ecosystem.

“In my art work, the viewer experiences the absence of ice through watercolours. Water in the state of ice is so powerful, yet extremely fragile. These pieces focus on the melting of ice and the beauty of crystallized forms in glaciers – I am creating a memory of what is disappearing. Ultimately, I want it to educate, engage, and connect people to their surroundings so that their thoughts can turn into action.

Veronika hopes that the message of how ocean pollution is accelerating climate change – communicated through art, rather than “dry facts and statistics” – will bridge the gap between science, emotion and action.

The project is timely: new research into the impact of plastic production and pollution on climate change has just been published, which establishes a clear link between the twin crises facing our planet.

For more information about the upcoming exhibition in Nová Radnice, Prague, and to see more of Veronika’s work, please visit: https://veronikapodlasova.wordpress.com/

Veronika would also like to express her gratitude for the kind cooperation of the scientists and Masaryk University, who made this trip possible.