They Will Be Only Survivors…

They Will Be Only Survivors…

Jellyfish project from the UK based artist Svetlana Grishina

Article by Maritima01

Svetlana Grishina was born in Belarus in 1989. In 2004 she moved to London and started studying at Hampstead College of Fine Arts where her final GCSE mark was confirmed as one of the top ten results in the UK. In 2011 she graduated from Oxford University, Ruskin School of Fine Art and 2017 she got a Masters Degree from the same institution. Svetlana took part in many art projects, mainly in the UK and Russia, but also in Italy and Spain. These include an esoteric installation “Hidden Within the Spectacle” at Tate Britain in 2016 and an international show within the parallel program of the Venice Biennale, “FIND ME” at Spazio Kanz, and projects within the parallel program of the Moscow International Biennale.  Her work has been acquired by various private and institutional collections including Triumph Gallery, Art 4 Museum, Ovcharenko Gallery and Art Made foundation.


My project about Jellyfish. ‘More than one but less than many’.

‘I was always interested in ‘the impossible’ and ‘the miraculous’, something that is outside temporality or outside causality. Throughout history Immortality has always been present in the human fantasy in religion, mythology, and art. But recent scientific discoveries show that everlasting life isn’t merely a concept fantasised by humans, but for some beings it is a reality. These brainless, spineless and heartless sea-creatures have been classified by humans as ‘primitive life forms’ but they are living out our most advanced scientists’ and the most psychotic mystics’ wildest dreams.’


‘More than one but less than many’ is an exhibition that took place at Streatham Space Projects in London between November 28th and February 23rd.

The show was a series of paintings of immortal jellyfish Turritopsis Dohrnii and Siphonophores.

Turritopsis Dohrnii is officially known as a biologically immortal creature. When lacking resources, under threat, or under stress, the Turritopsis Dohrnii can revert itself back to its polyp state and its life cycle all over again.

The Siphonophorea are capable of living eternally by by cloning themselves. Instead of growing by enlarging their body, they clone themselves and add many smaller bodies. The bodies stay attached to each other and share resourced among them. They are a being/colony. 

Jellyfish also seem to be the only sea-creature which benefits from climate change. They flourish in warm water, it extends their breeding season, while many fish suffer from the lower oxygen percentage in increasing water temperatures. Overfishing brings down the number of predatory fish that could reduce the number of jellyfish, plastic in the ocean kills many other predators like turtles. Jellyfish have been floating in our oceans – unchanged- for at least 670 million years and it seems they will be only survivors when everything else has fallen apart.