Art. Science. Policy.

Katharine Owens’ practice repurposes unrecyclable film plastic into portraits of animals harmed by plastic pollution. 

Her work draws attention to the devastating impact of waste on ecosystems and species. 

The labor-intensive process of stitching plastic to canvas embodies the tension between fragility and resilience. 

The animals serve as both victims and witnesses, offering a visual narrative of our shared vulnerability in the face of environmental collapse. 

This series challenges viewers to confront their role in a disposable culture and invites a collective reimagining of our relationship with waste. 

Transforming discarded materials into portraits of beauty and loss inspires a deeper understanding of the choices we make and their lasting impact on the natural world.

 ABOUT:

Katharine Owens is a National Geographic Explorer and Fulbright Nehru fellow. Her art practice melds science and policy on the topic of plastic pollution.

She has worked on plastic pollution projects in places as varied as Connecticut, Kerala, India, and Svalbard in the Arctic Circle.

In 2021 she began Entangled and Ingested, a multi-year project to construct life-sized portraits of animals harmed by plastic pollution by hand-sewing unrecyclable film plastic on canvas. The largest pieces are co-created in public sewing workshops.

Kat lectures, hosts collaborative sewing workshops, and exhibits her work all over the world.