The Sea Rise Mural at Fish Hoek Beach is undergoing a much-needed revamp as the artwork had started to show signs of wear in the coastal environment.
Resident Kim Kruyshaar says the original mural that was completed by artist Claire Homewood almost three years ago will be repaired in the coming months.
“The mural is very close to the ocean which gets sand blasted.
“Claire did the original design and the mural, incorporating schools because we wanted young people to be involved and to bring awareness around climate change.”
Last week, Homewood and Fish Hoek High School learners and their art teacher, Margaret Stone; with Patrick Dowling of the Wildlife and Environment Society of South Africa (Wessa) and learners of Sandy’s School in Kommetjie discussed the best way to renew the mural.
Kruyshaar explains: “The original mural was a collaborative effort with the school and the youth from the far south were involved in the process.
“In the concept of change, the coastline is one of the places where you are going to see change fastest, because you get one big storm and there is massive erosion.
“I am interested in biodiversity because if you have a fairly intact biodiversity, you have this massive natural web that gives nature options for change and builds resilience.
“People keep thinking this is about nature. We are now in the sixth extinction that is definitely man induced, but not only because of climate change, but how we destroyed habitat.
“Earth has been through five previous ones and nature rebounded, but this is about how humanity and how civilisation is going to be impacted.
“We are going to be very seriously impacted if we don’t look after our biodiversity.”
Meanwhile Dowling says citizen’s participation was needed to deal with climate change.
“I am in the Wildlife and Environment Society of South Africa, environmental governance group with the portfolio of climate change.
“Being a local resident, I was super interested in having something as graphic and in the face of the public as this, carrying the message it was.
“It (the mural) was looking at different scenarios over time where, starting off with a toddler and ending off with elderly people over the kind of (sea level) rise being expected and what could be done to mitigate the speed of that rise over time.
“What type of choices need to be made, especially in an area like False Bay where there’s a number of places that are going to be very impacted by it, even Fish Hoek Beach, protected as it is.
“We have places like Marina da Gama and Strand which is also low lying and lots of buildings have garages below the sea level.
“So, things can go wrong and I think the City is concerned about those things too.”
Homewood, the artist behind the mural, said an updated version of the original mural would take shape with the ideas behind change and resilience.
“We are working with the ideas and metaphors behind change and growing our resilience and adaptability to change because the elements are changing, humans are causing change.
“Change is happening and our ability to be able to respond, work together and figure out new solutions is going to be what navigates us towards the future.
“For me that is the qualities to build and strengthen.”
She added that the original design and the updated version is about change.
“The original mural which was about sea levels rising is talking about climate change, talking about sea levels rising and the impact.
“We are in a changing climate, environmentally, socially and physically so it’s kind of also speaking to a bigger environment of how do we want to change, how do we want to be more conscious about what change happens.
“Also, how we work together, how we engage with the City, engage in conversation with environmentalists and people that are doing the thinking in terms of how change could not be scary but actually something positive and exciting.
“Is change going to happen to us or are we going to be a participant?”
Homewood added that the painting is part of a bigger fund-raising drive to update murals she had painted along the coastline.
“I have a number of paintings that are along the coastline.
There is a crowd-funding campaign and a lot of paintings that I have done that are going to naturally weather over the years, also with the ocean elements.
“If we can get excited about wanting to conserve biodiversity and wanting to create positive change, then let’s get on it and get busy.
“So, let’s work around the ideas of change.”
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