Garden in the Sea

Invited to create a piece for Espiritu Santo Island (Baja California, Mexico), Spanish sculptress Cristina Iglesias devised a labyrinth of sunken rooms, which favor marine life and emerge as both a seal upon, and a warning to protect and value the area, which was declared a UNESCO site in 2005. Executed in a type of cement with pH levels compatible with seawater, the monument is sited at a depth of 14 meters in the Bahìa de Candelero and is composed of 14 grates, each one 3 meters high, which join together to from two ambient groups. Evoking mythical Atlantis, they bear quotations from the text “Historia Natural y Moral de las Indias”, written between 1586 and 1587 by the Jesuit missionary Frate José de Acosta. The film documents the work’s long gestation period – 4 years – and celebrates the links between art, science and civil commitment to defend the ecology, showing the beauty and atmosphere of the site through suggestive photography, accompanied by the music of Stephan Micus and Hector Martell.