bi·o·nom·ics/bīəˈnämiks/
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Noun: |
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These photographs reveal a societal misapprehension that Humanity is in fact part of Nature while at the same time demonstrate that man-made objects are as natural as objects made by plants and other animals. These observational images border on documentary and the anthropological; however, it is not their end goal to be used for these scientific purposes. Although, the images have a systematic and impersonal perspective that echo the universal separation in how humans distinguish between artificial and natural objects.
I choose to work in film due to its physical presence and worth as a unique artifact; but in order to best present a piece of film, the image must be enlarged to be fully appreciated. But when I scan this film, I take away its uniqueness as an object and translate it into digital language. By making an acrylic transfer of the enlarged print, the photograph can return to its transparent state which it had while the image resided on the film. As soon as I dip the reproducible print of the scan into wax, I am giving it back both its identity and individuality as an object since the wax produces undulations and drips that can never be duplicated. This is similar to the sculptural work Milkstone by Wolfgang Laib. In the piece, Laib meticulously sands away the surface of a block of marble only to pour milk in the indention created to give it a completely white and flat surface. In my own work, I am taking away a piece of film’s uniqueness and by embalming the enlarged image into wax, am forming a photographic material that is greater than the sum of its parts.
The act of dipping the acrylic transfers into wax reflects the series goal to fuse Humanity to Nature so that they could be seen as inseparable. The wax is an organic plastic made from an animal, the humble honey bee; whereas, the acrylic used to hold the pigment is a man-made plastic. The acrylic is just as organic and natural as the beeswax, since the oil used to make the acrylic was formed from decayed plants and animals that were heated and compressed over millennia. Humans produced that acrylic using their own terrestrial means just as the bees use theirs to make their own plastic for interacting with their environment.
The series is not a set of merely passive observations, but instead it seeks to illuminate a schism in human nature. On one side, the images present that Humanity as a whole tries to separate itself from what is perceived as the natural. This may be due to Man’s assertion of superiority over other species and natural forces which would develop from having to overcome these forces in order to survive. On the other side, the objects in the same images could be seen as terrestrial and therefore as natural as a beehive or a bird’s nest. The act of presenting them as wax artifacts takes these observations and offers a harmony between the artificial and natural.
