Migration – from my exhibition Art for Planet Earth

Migration is very much in the news nowadays but it’s been an issue for hundreds of years: even the Romans also had debates about what to do with migrants. Now people are fleeing not only war, oppression and famine, but the effects of climate change have increasingly become a significant driver of people seeking asylum, often referred to – somewhat clinically – as ‘environmental displacement’.

In this painting I needed to express the link of migration to global problems and ‘tipping’ points in the other works in the series and the feelings of despair as well as hope that this brings up in me. This is reflected in the depressive colour palette of dark blues and the bland, faceless buildings. The woman with the child in the foreground is dressed in a lighter blue and represents a glimmer of hope for the people entering and leaving a country.

Extreme weather, hurricanes, drought and desertification, wildfires, floods and storms are become more frequent due to climate change and destroy homes, infrastructure and livelihoods, forcing communities to move. Rising sea levels due to melting polar ice and thermal expansion of sea water threatens coastal areas, again driving long-term migration. Some estimates suggest that by 2050, between 150 million and 300 million people could be displaced due to climate change-related factors.

This puts a huge stress on existing infrastructure and resources and can lead to tensions between asylum seekers and host communities, especially if migration is sudden or badly managed, as we have seen recently in the UK. Legal frameworks that recognise the rights and needs of climate refugees are crucially important.