Kathie Foley-Meyer, Max Marcellus and Christine Lee, still from Descent and Transformation Vol. II, underwater choreography and videography session, 2026. On-camera diver Alannah Vellacott, cameraman André Musgrove, and safety diver Jonathan Galendez. Image courtesy Max Marcellus.
Descent & Transformation Volume II is a collaboration between artist, curator and scholar Kathie Foley-Meyer, PhD, video editor and cinematographer Max Marcellus, and I as artist and costume designer/fabricator. It is a continuation of Descent & Transformation, a project created by Foley Meyer and Marcellus in 2020, with videographer André Musgrove and on- camera diver Alannah Vellacott, which was funded by a seed grant from the Ocean Memory Project. The themes of Black bodies in residence time, isolation and connectedness are further explored for the 2nd installment along with the incorporation of Marcellus’ Haitian heritage and Caribbean context. Foley-Meyer’s research which is rooted in the concept of Black bodies in residence time, can be viewed in her evocative presentation Descent & Transformation: The Art and Science of Ocean Memory at the 2022 Fulcrum Festival Deep Ocean/Deep Space .
Filming took place August 2026 at Owl’s Hole, an underwater cave in Freeport, Bahamas. Diver Vellacott performed underwater choreography wearing a costume I customed designed and made with fabric I hand wove on a TC2 digital jacquard weaving loom. The fabric itself is made with cotton and dissolvable yarn as both metaphorical and literal threads and ribbons of time filtered through ocean water. Exchange of research and collaborative ideation with Foley Meyer and Marcellus informed the final designs woven into the fabric. With Foley-Meyer serving as creative producer, filming was directed by Marcellus, underwater footage was captured by videographer Musgrove, and safety was overseen by diver Galendez.
This is an active project; updates will be posted here as it develops.