GOODLand

My practice grows from the watershed of Bantayan Island, where culture is lived through land, seeds, farming, and the stories people carry. Over the years I have been documenting how knowledge is passed down in this place, from heirloom seeds that ensure food sovereignty to the native plants, trees, birds, and daily practices that show how deeply culture is tied to the environment. The fellowship will support the long-term research and fieldwork that shape my practice, allowing me to continue gathering these materials and translating them into moving-image and installation works, as well as into ways of thinking and working that support people’s relationships with the land and sea.

– Martha Atienza

The 2026 VISIBLE Situated Fellowship is awarded to GOODLand, an artistic and community platform based on Bantayan Island in the Visayas, Philippines, founded in 2020 by artist Martha Atienza, nominated by Visible Catalyst Zoe Butt (Founder, in-tangible institute / Artistic Director, deCentral: Thailand). Developed through close collaboration with fisher people, farmers, local communities, and institutions, GOODLand operates through a model of collective care that connects ecological protection, coastal communities’ rights, cultural resilience, and self-sufficiency. The platform supports research, training, advocacy, and participatory initiatives rooted in local agricultural, medicinal, and environmental knowledge, while promoting sustainable relationships with both land and sea.

At the center of GOODLand’s work is the understanding of the seabed as an underwater forest that requires urgent protection. Through collective actions, educational programs, and critical re-use initiatives responding to ocean plastic pollution, the project contributes to building new forms of collective responsibility around the fragile ecosystem of the Philippine archipelago — one of the regions most exposed to the increasing impact of super-typhoons and climate instability. Atienza’s artistic practice develops in close continuity with this experience, using video and participatory methodologies as tools to document and engage with the context in which she operates. Together, GOODLand and Atienza have developed a shared ecological and cultural imaginary centered around care, resilience, and coexistence.

The fellowship will support the further development of several active initiatives within GOODLand, including the distribution of rechargeable flashlight systems aimed at reducing pollution caused by compressor diving, as well as the organization of regular coastal and underwater clean-up programs.

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