Surface
by Fiona Bowie

Onboard Aquabus ferry and other locations

Surface is a live documentary of the underwater life of False Creek, transmitted from a camera mounted under an aquabus (a small commuter ferry). The submerged camera will feed streaming video 24 hours/day directly to www.surfacer.ca and to a TV monitor mounted inside the boat, which people can watch while riding the ferry. The live footage can also be seen on screens at various locations on Granville Island.

The live stream functions as an abstract mix of colours and impressions, until crustaceans or fish swim by. After dusk, Surface takes on a more intimate world, when tiny crustaceans, larval animals and eels can be seen. During the term of its installation, Vancouver artist Fiona Bowie hopes to track the health of False Creek’s marine life as evidence of our collective footprint.

“Surface will evolve over time, reflecting the health of marine life as evidence of our collective activity: the future of the work and what is manifest is wholly dependent on us.”

-- Fiona Bowie

Artist Biography

Vancouver artist Fiona Bowie is well known for her work with 360-degree immersive narratives and the creation of unique image systems. Flow, her new work with Sidney Fels at Kingsway 1, is Vancouver's first photo/media-based permanent public art work and was commissioned by the City of Vancouver for the new Mount Pleasant Civic Centre. Her art has also been exhibited in Europe, America and across Canada. A graduate of UBC, Bowie is an Assistant Professor of Integrated Media at Emily Carr University of Art + Design.

 

See It

 

Picture It

The following images of eels were captured by the camera mounted under an aquabus in April 2010.