December 2023 – January 2024

A Multimedia Immersive Collaboration with Michel Droge, Carolina González Valencia, Tristan Koepke, and Asha Tamirisa

In June of 2023, Michel Droge – Visiting Assistant Professor of Art and Visual Culture, was invited to join Co-chief Scientists Dr. Beth Orcutt of the Bigelow Laboratory for Ocean Sciences located in East Boothbay, Maine and Dr. Jorge Cortés-Núñez of the Universidad de Costa Rica and an international team of scientists and artists on a month-long expedition off the Pacific Coast of Costa Rica to explore the Earth’s first-ever-discovered octopus nursery. The team’s ultimate goal is to understand the specific hydrogeology, microbiology, ecology, and geochemistry that enables these octopus nurseries to thrive and characterize the life-supporting services provided by the ecosystems on these seamounts.

The immersive multi-media exhibition Beyond Midnight shares the experience of the deep sea through collaborative video, sound, and  movement. The deep sea is an animated, queer  and wonderous place full of life that is rarely encountered by humans. In light of current demands for metals and minerals found abundantly on the sea floor and the impending risks of unregulated exploitation by mining, we want to share the vibrancy of the deep sea to raise awareness of the urgent need for the protection and conservation of these fertile, queer and vital ecosystems.

The video and sound recordings were collected from the deep sea (from beyond the Midnight Zone to the Abyssal Plain at approximately 3000 meters by Schmidt Ocean Institute's ROV Dive Team aboard the Falkor (too) in June of 2023. While aboard the same ship, Michel collected video and sound footage from the deck of the ship. During the next few months, Michel collaborated with Interdisciplinary Bates Professors: Carolina Gonzalez Valencia, who edited the video footage for this exhibition; Asha Tamirisa, who produced the soundtrack from sound recordings from the boat; and Tristan Koepke, who choreographed performances inspired by the footage and the descriptions of the experience. Thank you to The Bates Arts Collaborative, Impact 21st, Schmidt Ocean Institute, Bigelow Laboratory for Ocean Sciences, and The Bates Faculty Development Fund for your collaboration and support. Thank you to Alexis Pauline Gumbs for text excerpts from Undrowned: Black Feminist Lessons from Marine Mammals.