Portrait of artist Shezad Dawood at the sea?s edge in East Sussex
Shezad Dawood is seven years into ‘Leviathan’, a mammoth multidisciplinary project centred around our changing oceans. Maisie Skidmore visits the artist in his Hackney Wick studio to learn more about this monumental undertaking
Shezad Dawood is not one to back down from a big idea. ?When I first called the project ?Leviathan?, my partner asked, ?Are you sure you want to do that"?? the artist says.
It was 2015, and London-based Dawood had begun to draw connections between the perilous journeys migrants were making across the Mediterranean, dominating the news at the time, and the environmental changes taking place under that same sea?s surface. He started speaking to environmentalists, oceanographers, political scientists, neurologists and trauma specialists, bringing together elements of their research on climate change, marine ecosystems, migration and mental health into the beginnings of what would become ?Leviathan? ? a 10-part film cycle that also encompasses virtual-reality works, paintings, sculptures, textile pieces, talks and symposia featuring scientists and other thinkers. Inaugurated at the Venice Biennale in 2017, seven years on, ?Leviathan?, the title taken from Thomas Hobbes? 1651 work and the biblical sea monster of the same name, continues to gather momentum. Disposable Mementoes (Dolphins), 2018
As an artist who is drawn to examine huge systems ? language, history and legend ...