An exhibit put together by Y & R Shanghai places wooden shark coffins in strategic places to raise awareness for shark poaching. Every year, 73 million sharks are poached. This startling statistic stands in contrast to the love of sharks experienced in Western pop culture (ahem, Shark Week), compared to Asia where most of the shark poaching happens.
The coffins are fairly standard in shape and size, with a rustic dark wood finish. The quality would be more basic than most might expect for a human burial. The coffins are affixed with shark tales, flippers and fins. This makes it seem like the rest of the shark is inside the box. The installations come with a placard with educational information about this issue.
What's Driving This Trend
- Awareness-raising Installations
- Using installations to raise awareness on critical issues and promote behavioral change.
- Education-centered Activism
- Raising social consciousness through engaging installations that provide educational information on key issues.
- Eco-friendly Installations
- Creating installations from eco-friendly materials that raise awareness and promote positive change.
Who This Affects Most
- Environmental Conservation
- Opportunities for environmental organizations to collaborate with artists and designers to create impactful installations that raise awareness for causes.
- Tourism
- Sustainable tourism organizations could leverage such installations to promote responsible travel practices.
- Event Management
- Event management companies could collaborate with artists and designers to promote social and environmental messaging through creative installations.
