Andy Hughes. He was born in Castleford, Yorkshire, UK, in 1966. He developed an interest for marine and land landscapes after learning to surf while he was a student at the Art College. He studied Fine Arts at the University of Cardiff, and photography at the University of London. He recently released a book called Dominant Wave Theory, designed by David Carson.

“A solitary red balloon escapes from a kid’s hand and floats in a bluebird sky. As it floats above the ocean – just a dot in the vast immensity of the ocean- we inevitably ask ourselves what this amazing trip’s destiny will be, and if it will ever land.

But the land will bring it back. As the helium slowly comes off, the balloon, as many other similar things, will join the marine plastic debris invading our oceans, our coastlines and finally our beaches. Bottles, tins, fishing nets, pita fibre, plastic toys, syringes, plastic bags and lots more, polluting the marine environment and the coast.

Is it really that worrying? More than 14 billion pounds of rubbish are thrown into our oceans every year, including more than 230 million plastic bottles. Not to mention all the consequences this brings; we’ll divide them in two: the ocean flow and the land’s resources”.

Josh Karliner (Message in a Bottle)