He Died for Our Fins
72" x 48" Diptych, InkJet on Satin, 2021
In He Died For Our Fins, I draw on the language of religious martyrdom and pietà to confront the quiet violence of ecological collapse. Draped in red, seated in ritualistic stillness, the figure cradles a wounded, hand-sewn shark—a stand-in for species exploited and discarded in the name of consumption. The exaggerated theatricality of the scene blurs grief and complicity, inviting viewers to reckon with the absurdity and brutality of this sacrifice. By invoking sacred imagery, the work asks: What does it mean to mourn what we continue to destroy?
My staged photographs and soft sculptures examine the trafficking of endangered species through camp aesthetics and dark humor. Sensual materials contrast with brutal themes, blending female and fish forms. My ecofeminist performances explore parallels between women’s and animals’ reproductive rights, both under threat from patriarchal systems of control.
— Merissa Mann