Kinesis is a Bermuda National Gallery project by artist Catherine Lapsley.

The word itself comes from Greek and means motion or movement. It is related to kinetic, as in kinetic sculpture, which is sculpture that actually moves.

Lapsley’s installation, while implying motion, does not itself move. Still, the sense of motion one experiences while standing or walking within the installation is incredibly real.

The BNG Project Space is a small, rectangular area, some 7 feet by 18 feet. It is devoted to exhibiting special projects and in the case of Lapsley, she has created a mural that surrounds whoever is viewing, on all three walls.

The genesis of the project is a grid which implies stability, verticality and horizontality, but then the structural framework begins to wobble and wave, convex and concave. It’s like you are enveloped in the swish and swirl of surf. If you have balance issues, better find a way to steady yourself. You might find the show disorienting.

Of course, one realises that the actual walls are flat and straight, but the implied distortions are incredibly convincing.

The project’s dominating colour is blue. And there are variations of blue, but interspersed within are areas of white, dark brown, etc. It is like diving and swimming through the sea, with all its variations of light filtering down through water and waves. Here and there within, are even flecks of flashy flotsam.

Additionally, each intersection of the grid is highlighted by tiny squares of, mostly white, but occasionally bright colours such as orange or yellow. The overall effect is one of sparkle.

In visiting this installation, you might want to bring your swimsuit. It is really like being in the sea.

As detailed in an earlier interview in The Royal Gazette, the installation is part of Lapsley’s continuing In My Life series, which she began in 2013, and builds on Free Flow, which was exhibited in the 2022 Bermuda Biennial.

A graduate of Kingston College of Art in England, Lapsley has worked in graphic design, printmaking and photography. Her work is held in private and public collections, including the Hamilton Princess Hotel & Beach Club and Butterfield Bank.

• Kinesis continues in The Project Space at the Bermuda National Gallery through mid-September. For more information visit bng.bm/exhibition/kinesis/