Greqvist's Lighthouse Sketchbook

Greqvist's Lighthouse Sketchbook
Surviving page from Greqvist's Lighthouse Sketchbook, depicting Elin at the beacon with Runa attempting to rescue him, drawn by Ingrid Greqvist in early 2054
Created by	Ingrid Greqvist
Date range	Winter 2054
Location	Halfjord coastline, Ulmarka
Material	Charcoal on paperboard
Current status	Partially destroyed (studio seizure)

Greqvist's Lighthouse Sketchbook, a bound collection of charcoal drawings by Ingrid Greqvist, charts the rapid freezing and submersion of the Halfjord coastline during the winter of 2054. Created in the face of rising sea levels threatening the northern coast of Ulmarka, the work documents the structural failure of the Halfjord lighthouse and depicts her brother Elin, a station keeper, making desperate attempts to maintain the beacon against encroaching waters. The artist burned the final volume in protest after the Coastal Defense Corps sealed off her studio in Torstad, leaving only a single page as evidence. This surviving sketch depicts a lighthouse half-submerged in black water while her younger sister Runa attempts to pull Elin from the waves, an image that became a potent symbol of resistance against state control over coastal documentation.

The Sketchbook is a chronicle of environmental collapse and familial endurance. The work charts the gradual freezing of the Halfjord coastline under rising sea levels, documenting Greqvist's daily observations of erosion patterns and the increasing structural stress on the lighthouse tower. Her brother Elin appears prominently in several sketches, portrayed not as a hero but as a figure struggling against impossible odds to keep the light burning for shipping lanes that were already shifting due to the climate crisis. The drawings capture the transformation of the landscape from a bustling fishing hub to a ghost town swallowed by ice and saltwater.

The artist's final act was one of defiance rather than despair. Upon learning that authorities had confiscated all remaining volumes, citing safety concerns related to flooding, Greqvist burned the seized material in her apartment shortly after the seizure in February 2054. This act left only a single page intact, which was recovered by local activists and held as evidence in the 2054 Coastal Documentation Case. The burning of the volumes became a symbolic protest against the Corps' control over how the crisis was documented and who had permission to witness it.

Greqvist began the Sketchbook in late 2053 as rising tides threatened the Halfjord region of Ulmarka. The drawings capture daily observations of the coastline's transformation, including erosion patterns and the structural stress on the lighthouse. The work reflects growing tensions between local residents and the military-administered Corps, which began restricting access to the area in early 2054 following the Protectorate Wars' legacy of securing strategic coastlines for resource extraction.

During the winter of 2054, the sketches document a specific event where Elin ventured onto ice that was too thin to support him. Ingrid's charcoal work captures the texture of the melting ice and the dark, churning water rising around the base of the tower. These pages serve as both a scientific record of climate adaptation failures on Ulmarka's northern coast and a personal diary of a family being displaced by state policy. The sketches also feature Ysolde, Ingrid's mother, who watches from the shore, her face etched with worry in several frames that hint at the emotional weight carried by the family as they watched their home disappear.

In February 2054, the Coastal Defense Corps sealed off Greqvist's studio in Torstad, effectively cutting off the artist from her materials and her community. Authorities confiscated all remaining volumes of the Sketchbook except for one page. Greqvist burned the seized material in her apartment shortly after, a act that became symbolic of resistance against the Corps' control over coastal documentation. The surviving page is now held as evidence in the 2054 Coastal Documentation Case, where it was used to argue for the necessity of independent scientific observation during times of crisis.

The seizure occurred amidst broader crackdowns on civilian researchers who documented the effects of the Protectorate Wars and subsequent climate shifts. The Corps argued that unauthorized documentation could reveal vulnerabilities in coastal defenses or aid potential saboteurs, a claim that critics dismissed as an excuse to silence dissent. The incident highlighted the struggle for scientific freedom versus state security in 2054-2055, particularly regarding how data on rising sea levels was managed and who was permitted to view it.

The single surviving page of the Sketchbook has become an icon for environmental activists and those opposing the Coastal Defense Corps' methods. It is frequently referenced in discussions about climate adaptation failures on Ulmarka's northern coast. The image of Runa pulling Elin from the waves is reproduced in posters, digital archives, and educational materials used by the Cohesive Global Concord to

• Environmental resistance in Ulmarka
• Coastal Defense Corps
• Halfjord flooding crisis