My work focuses on our relationship to nature exploring what links us to the ocean and waterways. Water has remained ubiquitous in my work because I’m interested in the impact it has on us physically, spiritually and emotionally. I aim to show a variation of strength and tranquility with my subjects and environments to question the way we interact with the natural world and encourage environmental empathy. Working with photography and video, I create imagery that explores sentiments of transcendence and fluidity. My goal is to link an emotional connection between the viewer and environments and develop a stronger relationship between the body and water. Most recently I have added mixed media and projection as a way to deepen this experience. Through these explorations I hope to shift ideas from water as a resource towards an understanding of an innate intimate relationship. My hope is that this will invite questions of how our current lifestyle and climate change is having an effect on these relationships and what we can do to protect them.
The project I intend to research and facilitate during the “Once Upon Water” residency is a body of work, The Weight of Water, a series of portraits of the transformational landscape of the lake. I’m interested in exploring the romantic aesthetics through abstract and graphic expressions. The residency will provide an opportunity to be close to water to experiment and study it. I will continue to test with long exposures through photography, abstract footage with video and possibly a final interpretation combining the two with video projection.
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Meaghan Ogilvie is a photographer specializing in underwater from Toronto, Canada. Her work has been shown in galleries across North America and Europe, gaining her several acclaimed awards including being shortlisted for the Sony World Award. Meaghan has also participated in residencies in New York City, the Caribbean and Vancouver.