Systems Series
Systems Hybrid, 2012, oil/paper
This series, produced from 2010 to 2013, examined interspecies correlations in terms of structural parallels between different biotic forms. Specifically, this work examined the visual structure of systems in both human and plant form: circulatory, reproductive/propagative, and vascular. The media comprises oil paint on paper. The body of work encompasses a series of paintings and installation pieces, created with hundreds of small shaped paintings that are raised and flow over the wall. The configuration varies with each venue.
Utilizing scientific diagrams and microscopy images from both botanical and human research to guide the work, the intention was not to strictly replicate the scientific illustrations or images. I am interested in exploring the visual analogies that emerge when this imagery is removed from its original scale, paradigm, and context. By rendering all subject matter on a similar scale and removing associative size, context, and colour, I aim to highlight the visual and functional similarities in these fundamental aspects of life. The visceral quality of paint and gestural application is employed as a method of distancing the subject matter from the purely empirical data of scientific illustrations, thereby intentionally emphasizing a more subjective perspective on information. I am intrigued by the visual ambiguity of the forms, which can be interpreted as either botanical or zoological, or as internal or peripheral elements. For instance, forms may resemble seed pods or blood cells. Some of the imagery references plant systems; others depict human or animal elements, and some are internationally rendered as hybrid in nature. Ultimately, my intention, through the use of these visual analogies, is to emphasize the fundamental interconnectedness of all life systems.
