Farm Projects is pleased to present “Tethered,” an exhibition exploring connection through the work of Traci Harmon-Hay. Featuring a series of surreal paintings and sculptural assemblages from the Wellfleet-based artist’s latest series, Hovering Boats, the works on view redefine the tradition of coastal seascapes as a means of questioning the nature of our relationships to each other and the natural world. 

Each composition presents a boat as its subject, but unlike traditional nautical paintings, each boat is elevated above the water’s surface, connected only by a distinct anchor line. While the boats are brightly colored, they inhabit stark environments marked by ominous shadows. As the artist describes: “The hovering boat with line defines the connection between the wellbeing of humans and the environment. The boat is a vessel for life. The ocean sustains that life. The boat and the ocean are forever connected, tied to one another.” In this sense, the works subtly illustrate the tension that often characterizes the relationship between humanity and the ecosystems that sustain us.  

In addition to the paintings on view, the exhibition presents a series of intimate assemblages that incorporate small paintings of hovering boats into utilitarian objects such as fish cans, matchboxes and matchbooks. Through these works, these objects are transformed from something strictly functional and disposable into an opportunity to consider the connection between human societies and our oceans. As the artist describes, “The can contains the fish we eat and the matches represent the heat of the waters temperature rising.” Thus, through both the paintings and the assemblages, “Tethered” offers the hovering boat as a symbol for our connection to the oceanic ecosystems we call home.