The gallery with no air(s) and 24 minutes of viewing time
 |
| Art Exhibition on the sunken hull of the USS Mohawk - 30 miles into the Gulf from For Myers |
Fort
Myers shipwreck
Enjoy the 12 -work exhibitions but
always mind the sharks
By Stephen Weir
It is an international happening -- an art show that
will have you holding your breath -- but only for so long. People
in-the-know and who have access to dive equipment, a big boat and the
willingness to swim with big fishes, have been making underwater pilgrimages
all summer to see the hidden work of Austrian artist Andreas Franke.
 |
| Underwater closeup of hull art show |
 |
| Underwater closeup of hull art show |
The wreck has quickly become a habitat for game fish
and a popular dive destination for scuba divers. Franke toured and
photographed the ship prior to her sinking and then once again once she was on
the bottom.
Back in Vienna he imagined the life of sailors past,
aboard the 78-year old Mohawk – their daily lives and their dreams of home. He
superimposed studio shot images he took of models in period clothing onto his
original photography of the ship.
These mashed–up scenes are ghostly apparitions of
Franke’s whimsical view of the War.
The Mohawk becomes an underwater version of the Flying Dutchman – a ship,
a crew and somehow some pretty female passengers doomed to sail the seas
underwater for all time eternal.
Not guts and glory, these are pictures of svelte
sailors and sunbathing women lounging on a ship that isn’t fighting the foamy
rage of the North Seas, hidden Nazi submarines and the sardine-close quarters
aboard a 165ft long 5-storey floating tin-can.
According to the artist, he is exploring themes of
love, loss, and youth at a time when the world was at war. “I imagined these sailors waiting in
the North Atlantic for a German sub to attack them, so in these images I tried
to make their lives a little bit nicer with the girls on board. If I was
there, what would I want? It’s a dream, a fantasy land for sailors.”
 |
| After 2 months the sea has begun to take over . |
The dozen works of art originally installed on the
Mighty Mo depict the fighting men and women of the 40’s as buff and barely
dressed, on board a steel hulled vessel that is more party boat than warship.
One sailor, wearing only rolled up white pants, comes onto a sunken deck with a
30 lb wrench casually carried on his shoulder, his well defined six pack barely
showing any strain.
Another has a sailor and gal smooching on the stern
while a school of fish swoop over the deck. Two men arm wrestle on deck, a
captain grabs a smoke outside the wheelhouse, and everyone is oblivious to the
fact that they are pictured underwater!
Women sunbathe and drink fancy drinks on the bow of
the sunken ship. In another composite photograph, two sailors and their girl
nap with the fishes on the bow. There are pictures of deck brawls, tattoo
sessions and sailors courting the women in a style that is as lost in time as
the ship they stand upon.
 |
| Franke original before it was taken below! |
"In case of the Mohawk everything went out very
well from the beginning," said the artist. "I had the chance to see the
ship before it was sunk. The first time I saw the ship I thought it was a great
ship. We have a very close relationship with Joe Weatherby, www.reefmakers.com who was responsible
for the sinking of the Mohawk. We were also very lucky that we got a lot
of support from Lee County So we were able to get the permission to hang
the art on this wreck very short-term."
Each image measures roughly 2.5 by 3.5 feet and is
encased in steel-framed Plexiglas. Industrial grade magnets firmly affix the
works to the hull. "During their time at sea, the photos will evolve with
accumulation of marine life," explains the artist, "which will give
them a seaworthy patina and life of their own and ennobles the art work to
unique pieces."
At the end of the underwater exhibition, “The
Sinking World” images will be brought to the surface for display at the Lee
County Alliance for the Arts galleries in Fort Myers on Oct. 4, 2013. The
mashed-up photographs will remain on display until Oct. 26, 2013.
 |
| Franke original before it was taken below! |
At the wreck site you need scuba gear to make it down
to the deck of the ship to see the works. When the exhibit was set up at
the beginning of the summer there were 12 works of art hung on the iron walls
of the ship - earlier this week I assisted in the removal of two of the pieces
(because of magnet detached).... so now divers can only take in a 10-piece
exhibit.
Given the time constraints involved in the science of
diving, when breathing compressed air, the longest one can dally at 90 feet
down, is about half an hour. And, since the composite photographs are scattered
throughout the 5-decks of the ship, there is quite a bit of swim time
required to take in the whole show.
 |
| Franke original before it was taken below! |
Seeing this exhibition is much different
than breathing fresh air and contemplating a masterpiece in a
museum. The works have only been up for two months but already sea
creatures and plant life have attached themselves to the pictures - I had
to rub off a thick layer of growth to take the pictures posted on this page.
Having worked for years within an art gallery
environment, I felt like I was damaging the work of art and offending the
artist. Not so, according to Franke.
"That divers clean the art work is not too bad
at all," he told me. "As long as they only clean the main part of the
images it doesn't bother me a lot. On the contrary, it is finally a part of the
whole concept. My work is done as soon as the artwork is fixed on the wreck.
Then the ocean and the diver decide how the final image will turn out. "
"During the time under the surface, the salt water coats and redefines the images with a patina made of algae and microorganisms. This and the touch of the divers transform each work to an entirely inimitable and absolutely unique art work," he continued. When the pictures are brought to the surface "again, the art work will be dried and sealed professionally so that they can be shown in a gallery.”
"During the time under the surface, the salt water coats and redefines the images with a patina made of algae and microorganisms. This and the touch of the divers transform each work to an entirely inimitable and absolutely unique art work," he continued. When the pictures are brought to the surface "again, the art work will be dried and sealed professionally so that they can be shown in a gallery.”
 |
| Franke original before it was taken below! |
Being on scuba changes everything. One doesn’t sit and contemplate the
art; you have to use your flippers to maintain an upright position (there can
be a current washing along the deck of the ship). Because colour disappears
with depth the pictures look like they are shot in black and white.
More importantly you must be mindful of a family of
massive jewfish who have taken up permanent residence on the ship. These 500 lb
behemoths thinking nothing of getting between you and the art show.
The day before I visited the ship, divers reported
seeing a 6ft long bull shark swimming slowly over the stern deck near one of
the art pieces. No divers were lost, so obviously the shark was a kind critic!
“Hope (that all) the art critics will be as gracious
with me!” said the artist. “Anyway, I am glad you weren't there the day
before! "
 |
| The artist at the wreck site |
SIDEBAR #1 – What is Next?
“I am completely fascinated
by that mystical underwater world, the very peculiar emptiness and a
tragic stillness but also by the shipwrecks. The depth has no big
influence at all as long as divers can reach them.”
Frankes has held three different
underwater exhibitions. Prior to
the Mohawk he has presented two different shows on the massive underwater wreck
of the USS Hoyt Vandenberg (Florida Keys) and the SS Stavronikita
(Barbados).Time consuming and costly to mount, Frankes looks forward to
producing more underwater exhibitions.
“You are right assuming the projects are
rather expensive,” he told me. “I don't want to go into details but so
much, all the money comes out of my pocket. There are no sponsors at all.”
“So our goal is to find a sponsor for
every upcoming exhibition. I am convinced this will be possible as especially
the tourism and dive industry has a lot of advantages, not only due to the
really amazing international media interest.”
The artist won’t say what he has planned
but does admit that there are some new projects in the works “ It is too early
to talk about them. But you can stay tuned for more to come!”
.jpg) |
| The 2012 sinking of the USS Mohawk |
SIDEBAR #2 HOW TO SEE THE WRECKS OF FORT MYERS
There are at least five dive boats
visiting the wreck of the Mohawk on a regular basis. People wanting to see The
Sinking World Of Andreas Franke - Mohawk Project – Life Above Refined Below,
must be certified divers and prepared for a 4 hour round trip to the site
Because the wreck is almost
30 miles out to sea, the dive departures are weather dependent. When I dove on the Mohawk it was 86
degrees Fahrenheit on the deck of the ship. I dove with Hard Core Hook & Line Charter. http://www.hardcorehookandlinecharters.com Cape Coral, FL 33909 Phone: 239-896-7889/239 839-9544
PHOTOGRAPHS - Lee County Tourism, Andreas Franke and Stephen Weir
Comments