PILLOW Pageant, A.I.R. Gallery – AfterShock: Marine Life Emergency Pillow

artist/filmmaker:  Jennifer Zackin

1923 Pillow, Marine Life Saving Belt and the Like, M.M. Dessau  U.S. Patent no. 1,470,598

Aftershock references the 1923 U.S. pillow patent Marine Life Saving Belt and the Like. Conceived to raise awareness about the 2010 B.P. oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico, and the state of emergency of aquatic life, this work serves as a reminder of our dependence on fossil fuel. The pillows are made of brightly colored tights, stuffed alpaca fleece, and sheep wool, covered in orange mesh, and will be used to sponge up the decades-long Gowanus Canal oil leak in New York City.