Heart of Life: Fragile Beginnings

by Haley Hartsfield Spencer

Honorable Mention, 2D Visual Art, Create | Encounter 2025

Artist Statement:

This piece is acrylic on recycled canvas. Earth life began in the ocean. Like the surface of our planet, our bodies are 80% water. Water is life, quite literally. It is in the depths of salt water that our oldest ancestors were formed, and we are still to this day formed in the dark salt-water wombs of our mothers.

This piece honors the common origins of all life and the value to all lives that our oceans serve. From absorbing carbon to providing a habitat for millions of creatures, our oceans are precious and delicate and the damage we are doing to them will have irreversible consequences. All of the bubbles in this piece were created using various pieces of human-made ocean litter, like plastic straws and bottle caps.

The imagery is a mixture of real and imaginary ocean life with references to human biology, including cellular structures and an umbilical cord. The delicate balance needed to sustain life, on our planet and within our bodies is fragile and deserves our respect and protection.