Not actually from the anime book that i had
as a child,
but the closest thing i could find online
Childhood
Beginnings
Many people enjoy the mythology of the
mermaid at some point in their lives and my own fascination since
childhood has never abated. It started with a
Chinese Anime comic book of Hans Christian
Andersen's Little Mermaid that I had.
The manga was
true to the original tragic and bittersweet ending
of Andersen's tale - with themes of yearning,
of sacrifice, of the challenges faced when
traversing into new realms and about Love that
could transcend
personal desires. The drawings were ornate and
the mood was melancholic. It was free
from cartoon kitsch and Disney-fication.
I was enamoured.
As
a big fan of mythology, I found the mermaid
particularly
alluring due to her hybrid nature, her mysterious
yet beautiful countenance and her command of the
surreal underwater kingdom.
The next inspiration came
when the iconic mermaid movie "Splash" with Darryl
Hannah came out in 1984. I was 10 years old
and the realism of the Splash tail added
fuel to my fantasy. When she unfurled
her tail in the bathtub, my heart bubbled
with joy at the realism...
As a child, I practiced swimming mermaid-style
whenever I had the chance to play freely in
a swimming pool and imagined that I would
one day swim in the ocean with a realistic
mermaid’s tail.
Ironically, on land, I was quite still and
sedentary as I wasn't allowed to pursue
physical activity while growing up but in
water, I was agile and confident because
swimming lessons had been approved in our
family as a safety skill.
Darry Hannah in "Splash"
As an adult,
this fantasy compelled me to create mermaid art:
sewing mermaid costumes, performing as a singing
mermaid in cabarets, appearing as a mermaid at
private pool parties, creating a shadowpuppet
mermaid fairytale, doing mermaid photoshoots and
even being featured as a mermaid on the cover of
Shared Vision magazine.
mermaid costume #1
(2002, Coppertank in Vancouver)
mermaid costume #3 (2007 Shared Vision Magazine)
Training the Mermaid
But this interest in mermaids is informed by more
than mythological fetishes. It is inspired by
a sincere awe of the Ocean realm and the sheer
enjoyment of moving through the medium of Water.
Over the years, I became a Scuba Diver and have
started to study Freediving in order to explore
my body's capacity underwater and further my
mermaid fantasy.
Scuba Diving
in Mexico (2007)
Freediving is the art and science of breath-hold
diving. It is scuba diving without the tank! Aquatic
activities such as pearl diving and spear fishing
use breath techniques to swim to great depths or
distance with just one breath. Competitive Apnea is
an extreme sport where superhuman depths,
times and distances are reached - boggling the minds
of scientists.
In April 2009, I participated in a freedive workshop
with
Performance Freediving as taught by the husband
and wife team Mandy-Rae Cruickshank and Kirk Krack.
(Mandy-Rae has broken world records in freediving
with Kirk as a coach and they took part in the
dolphin documentary "The
Cove".) Though I took to scuba diving like a
duck to a water, I discovered that freediving would
require long-term and consistent practice.
Thankfully, the inspiration of mermaids quietly
drives me to playfully expand my comfort zones.
Freediving
at
Porteau
Cove, BC (2009)
The Tail Continues
Most of my
costumes have been for land-use because I don't live near warm waters and
my performances would
be on a stage, but the on-going desire to swim in
the tail leads me to focus on creating a
"water-worthy" mermaid tail.
As I practice constructing the ultimate tail to achieve the realism of my childhood
dreams, I must also practice much patience!
With each version of the tail, I must allow for
trial and error. I must be willing to start
over again and test new ideas.
mermaid costume #2
(November 2007, Mexico)
mermaid costume #4
(April 2009, Mexico)
The Search for
Realism In
the mid-90's, I'd consulted with a few special
effects artists who quoted me a fee of over $10,000
for silicone tail construction. Even then, it
would not be guaranteed to work in the ocean as it
would be merely a prototype. Via the internet
in the last decade, I discovered experienced "tailmakers"
who have built professional mermaid tails of all kinds: including
Thom Shouse of California who headed the team who
created the Splash mermaid tail! However, his
realistic tails were not for purchase and are used
only for production rentals accompanied by a full
technical support crew.
Recently, I had finally found someone in the US who
created very realistic silicone tails for a fair
price and for several weeks, I was constantly dreaming of
silicone tail designs in my sleep! However,
right before I put my order in, I found a string of
angry reviews from several clients of his so I am
postponing until I can research further. For
now, I will continue to use the mermaid tail as an
art project for creative explorations.
The Monofin Test
In January 2011, I hired Peter Scott (www.Seahiker.com)
to do a bit of one-on-one training. We went to
a local pool and practiced equalization.
Though I have no problem equalizing for scuba
diving, it becomes
difficult when I freedive. He gave me some helpful training
tips and now it will be up to me to practice.In February, we had another session to practice
my movement with a Nemo monofin.
February 2011, Vancouver Aquatic Centre
The First Pool Experiment In March 2011, an old friend suddenly asked me if i
would shoot a short mermaid clip for his upcoming
music video. His timing was impeccable as I'd
recently constructed my fifth mermaid tail and was
looking forward to swimming in it. Though I was
still green as a freediver and it was also the first
time I dove without a mask - it was a great learning
experience. Here is a short montage of the
pool footage:
mermaid costume #5
March 2011, 2011, Vancouver Aquatic Centre
The First Ocean Experiment
In April 2011, I traveled to Thailand with my
sweetheart to do some scuba diving. I enjoyed
26 fabulous dives in the Andaman Sea, with 14 of
them done from
a liveaboard boat which visited the Similan Islands, Richelieu
Rock, Koh Bon
and Koh Tachai. We traveled on the fabulous
Manta Queen I boat from Khao Lak Scuba and had a
blast!
http://www.khaolakscubaadventures.com/
Underwater Videographer Dee and I
However, the Thailand trip would
not have been complete without some effort to
advance my mermaid fantasy.
Near the end of our trip, I managed to find a
very sweet underwater videographer named Dee
(from
Phi Phi Scuba) who was willing to do
a test video with me!
We hired a longtail boat
from Koh Phi Phi and went out to a nearby site.
The experiment turned out to be a grueling
experience due to challenges with:
a) a defective monofin
b) choppy surface waves
c) no device to rest on in between takes
d) nearly blind diving as I couldn't see
much without a mask
Despite the physical strain, I persevered to complete the
shoot. Again, it was a matter of learning in
the moment for both of us as we improvised the
entire shoot. It was exciting to "take
the plunge" into the ocean after all these
years of dreaming.
The experience was truly invaluable and a helpful
push forward in my mermaid studies...
Here is the footage that
Dee put together in a really short time!
April 2011, Koh
Phi Phi, Thailand
In
the last 2 years, I have found a mermaid explosion
has occurred in the collective consciousness.
Mermaids both amateur and professional have arisen
all over the internet and the world's first Mermaid
Awards will be held in August 2011 in Las Vegas!
It's exciting to see so many like-minded women (and
a few men as well) follow their passions!!
Many of them are very far along in developing
themselves as professional mermaids with amazing
costumes and advanced breath-holding skills. For
these passionate aficionados, mermaids are a
full-time focus!
Although
the mermaid fantasy is not such a major priority in
my life, it still remains a consistent and whimsical
thread in my personal journey. It continues to
stoke my fantasies and inspires me to play in places
that I wouldn't normally see. Playful
fantasies are important aspects of our
consciousness, revealing layers of our psyche that
we might not otherwise discover. If we listen
and cultivate these passions, they can be a powerful
initiator for unexpected evolution and adventure...
With love from the deep blue sea,
xox little woo
(May 7, 2011)
Some
awe-inspiring freedive videos:
Guillaume Néry freediving to 109 meters
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QFrHD2qfUSs
Some world records for freediving
competition (found on Wikipedia): (Remember that Advanced Scuba Diving
only allows for
30 meters of maximum depth!)
11 min 35 sec: static apnea (stationary breath-hold)
by Stéphane Mifsud, France
265 meters: dynamic apnea with fins (underwater
swimming for distance) by Dave Mullins, New Zealand
214 meters: No-Limits Apnea (freediving by any means
for depth) by Herbert Nitsch, Greece
