Ontario, Canada-based artist, Amanda, who operates as Studio TEAL, creates mesmerizing fluid and drip paintings of bioluminescent jellyfish. By doing so, Amanda gains the fascination of her over 120,000 Instagram followers, enticing them with the quiet lives of these magnificent ocean beings. By putting different jellyfish species in the spotlight, her paintings carry within them an advocacy for the conservation and preservation of the often-overlooked global jellyfish population. She affirms that unless people act now, humanity will risk losing the beautiful species to rising temperatures and habitat destruction. This is why her pieces are aligned with the United Nations Sustainable Development Goal of Life Below Water.
Jellyfish are an integral and imperative part of marine ecosystems everywhere around the planet. Their three biggest roles are to protect schools of baby fish, help maintain ocean food chains by being eaten and eaten, and finally, play a crucial role in ensuring the constant supply of almost 10 percent of the oceans’ nutrients, such as nitrogen and phosphorous, that are naturally expelled by jellyfish during their feeding activities.
However, due to anthropogenic threats such as overfishing and rising sea levels, Jellyfish are now considered a threatened species. This is precisely why Studio TEAL’s paintings go a long way in terms of raising awareness and calling people to act on jellyfish preservation and conservation.
The drip and fluid painting technique that Studio TEAL uses relies on working with paint that has been thinned with a medium, to the point where it could be modified by simply pouring it onto canvas. To create the jellyfish shapes seen on Amanda’s canvases, she would have to alternate between pouring different coloured thinned acrylic paints, all while quickly modifying it with a brush. The results are sleek and smooth surfaces, devoid of any sort of texture. Using this technique means that Studio TEAL can emulate the experience of looking at these jellyfish through the smooth glass surface of an aquarium. This reminds people of the artificial conditions through which they have interacted with jellyfish, allowing them to understand the very real implications of human endeavour for jellyfish longevity.
In a painting titled Water Spirit: Uprising, Studio TEAL refers to a jellyfish as a “water spirit” and affirms its transcendental nature. By calling it a spirit, they are evoking spiritual beliefs that consider jellyfish to be God-like deities. Considering how jellyfish protect and care for other marine species, Studio TEAL is definitely in the right.
Amanda’s work in Studio TEAL not only captivates her audiences with stunning depictions of bioluminescent jellyfish but also serves as a powerful advocacy tool for their marine conservation. Here and there, her fluid and drip painting technique gives birth to ethereal, aquarium-like visuals that remind viewers of the delicate balance between human activity and marine life.
Find out more about jellyfish paintings by Studio TEAL and their other pieces and initiatives by checking their Instagram on @studio_teal.