HEW LOCKE, THE WINE DARK SEA (2016)

With a title gleaned from Homer’s description of the Mediterranean Sea in The Odyssey, British sculptor Hew Locke makes a subtle allusion to the blood of slaves and refugees and to the deaths of migrants during ocean crossings over the course of centuries. The Wine Dark Sea is a sculptural installation of 34 boats that range from 9 to 72 inches long, a dozen of which were selected for installation at SITE Santa Fe. These custom-made models include contemporary and historic clippers, cargo ships, battleships, and lifeboats, and they evoke the symbolic power of the boat as a vessel for human transport, as well as for the human soul. Locke’s mixed media sculptures are made using a range of commonplace items, meticulously rendered as intricate, finely detailed works. “There’s a playfulness to his work, but there’s a very powerful push and pull,” Hofmann says. “You’re drawn in by these works and you just want to get close and look at them. You get a little close to one and realize that it’s actually modeled after a slave ship and you see how it’s set up for cargo. His perspective and way to talk about refugees is rooted in history and reminds us of a dark past of forced migration on the ocean.” The backdrop for the boats, some of which are mounted on pedestals and some of which are suspended at about eye level, are t wo vinyl murals: Banco Central Mexico (2020) and Greek Government Refugee Loan 1924 1 (2016), which depict obsolete, altered share certificates that reflect the troubled history of colonial-era trade and the uneasy relationship between refugees and host nations. — M.A.

Hew Locke, (2018), mixed media; courtesy the artist, photo Brandon Soder