This week's artist feature
Interview with Painter Michel Droge - "Into the Deep"
Michel Droge is a painter whose work engages with the environment and ideas of multi-species, non-binary, and entangled life systems. Inspired by oceans and land, mapping, and environmental research, their abstract paintings and drawings visually explore vulnerable and under-represented environmental areas to promote awareness and conservation, unravel existing systems and make way for emerging new ones.
They view environmental research and philosophy through a queer and eco-feminist lens. Michel's recent work visually explores and investigates the effects of deep-sea mining on the ocean and the world’s ecosystems. Since May of 2021, Michel has been a Visiting Artist in Residence at Bigelow Laboratories for Ocean Studies in East Boothbay, Maine, meeting regularly with Dr. Beth Orcutt, a Senior Research Scientist. Dr. Orcutt studies microbial life in deep-sea environments and the effects of deep-sea mining on the ocean’s ecosystems. The work here is informed by these sublime environments, mysterious life forms, uncharted territories, and conversations about the risks of human impact in these rarely seen primordial places.
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Lights Out Gallery has produced over 70 artist interviews uploaded on our YouTube channel and archived on our website. Production to date has been largely a volunteer effort with some support from small grants and donations. Each feature is created at no cost to the artist – we want to keep it that way. In order to continue featuring artists from across Maine, we need support from viewers like you. Become a member today!