Immersive drawing : mark-making beneath the surface

Abstract

Drawing evokes notions of mark-making on a surface. This paper explores an immersive and fluid kind of mark-making that originates beneath the surface, gradually emerging to reveal what is going on at a deeper level more specifically under the sea. Immersive mark-making arises from below in the form of undercurrents, generating ripples that progressively and delicately make their way up as they glimmer and reflect the light penetrating the surface of the water. Hand gestures contribute to fluid movements that form tiny, frothy bubbles, each containing a reflective space awaiting to be explored and delved into. The fleeting bubbles are so delicate and elusive that their elegant movement can hardly be absorbed by the naked eye. A camera is needed to catch these special moments lasting only a few seconds and which can never be replicated. The current set of immersive charcoal drawings documents the result of swift markmaking gestures below the surface of the Mediterranean Sea captured by a submerged action camera. What the collection of photographs reveals is a universe made of miniscule worlds, drifting and rolling in a playful unchoreographed manner before vanishing into thin air. The poetic passage, both agitated and graceful, allows for drawing in water. It comprises shapes and rhythms, light and darkness, shifts and stillness, aspects we rarely have the time to reflect upon. The ensuing discussion presents the findings emanating from beneath by bringing to the surface of the paper the liquid cosmos generated by drawing in water.