“ Finding Oxygen ” (2016-2017)
 

Finding Oxygen emerged from a period of movement through contrasting landscapes, abandoned dumping grounds, transitional terrains, and fragile natural environments. Within this series, the human body is carried into spaces that reflect the consequences of human presence, oscillating between what has been discarded and what still struggles to remain alive.
 

The gas mask appears throughout the work as both a protective device and a speculative symbol. It suggests a future that may not be as distant as we imagine: a world in which oxygen is no longer freely available, where survival depends on what we are forced to carry with us. Rather than functioning as a dramatic warning, the mask operates as a quiet proposition, an invitation to consider how environmental neglect might gradually redefine the most basic human act: breathing.
 

By placing the body in these disparate locations, I explore the tension between endurance and vulnerability. The figure does not attempt to conquer the landscape; instead, it reveals a state of adaptation, as if rehearsing for a reality that could one day arrive. The search for oxygen becomes less about panic and more about awareness, recognizing the fragile contract between humans and the ecosystems that sustain them.
 

This series does not seek to predict the future, but to hold space for reflection. If we fail to care for the natural world, the image of carrying oxygen may shift from metaphor to necessity. Finding Oxygen ultimately asks a simple question: how much must disappear before we understand that the air around us has never been guaranteed?