Kochi Fish Cemetery - a warning

You will find a fish cemetery on display at Fort Kochi South Beach, behind the Dutch cemetary.

Image credit: SM Jenkin

It's a beautiful installation created by artists Manoj Brahmamangalam and Pramod Gopalakrishnanan, described as "a warning, for the sustenance of life". 

Dr V Kripa, head of Fishery Environmental and Management Division principal scientist at the CMFRI says. “Plastic has become one of the biggest threats to aquatic ecosystems and their resources...Large plastic sheets have been found in the stomach of mackerel, tuna, queen fish, ribbon fish and whale, which clearly indicates that plastic has entered our marine food chain"

It beautifully illustrates the damage done to our ecosystem by the dumping of plastic waste on land, but is it necessary? Don't we know this by now, or is it a case of a problem being seen as "out of sight, out of mind...?"

The Judicious Heretics Return

“Two roads diverged in a yellow wood, 

And sorry I could not travel both”

The Road Not Taken Robert Frost

The Judicious Heretics of ME4 are back! This time they will be enticing you along the road not taken, with a collaborative Litart exhibition of works inspired by the poem by Robert Frost.  

So, what's unique about this exhibition? It was all produced anonymously. A series of written responses to the poem were created and then sent to the artists, who then produced their interpretation of the new works. As last year, the artists did not know who the writers were and the writers do not know who (if anyone) has produced an artwork in response to their poem or story.  

The exhibition includes art and writing from creatives including: Chris Van Beck, Maggie Drury, Sally Evans, Sam Fentiman-Hall, Sarah Hehir, Heather Haythornthwaite, Philip Kane, Bill Lewis, Maria C McCarthy,  Peter Reeds and Dianne Reeves.

The exhibition of words and art will be launched in Rochester on Thursday, 3 September at 7.30 pm and afterwards will be shown at other locations in Medway. Further information about the launch event and exhibition is available from the ME4Writers or on the community page on Facebook

The full text of The Road Not Taken by Robert Frost is available to read or listen to on the website of the Poetry Foundation