Watchers, 2018

steel, synthetic fabric, paper rocks, 3D printed sticks, coffee, gmo grass seed, thread, rocks, dirt, sticks

dimensions varied

After spending every weekend outside for a year, my body had grown accustomed to the behavior of the natural landscape of Virginia. It was easy to seek wild spaces as a place to reflect. Before I became conscious of it, I found myself spending most days in a household, sheltered from rain, dirt, and the debris that falls from the neighboring trees. Spending time inside a house is also a place for reflection, but an odd place. While in my room, I began mapping light out of the need to tell the time of day by the sun’s position. I started mistaking all of the sticks I saw on my bike rides for squiggling worms. I began to question if the things I was once familiar with were all true. Watchers melds together these places for reflection and poses the question: can we really distinguish what is inside versus outside?

The work was installed in the lobby of the Fine Arts Building at VCU for one week. Each night the paper rocks, 3D printed sticks, rocks, and sticks were repositioned. With each day, coffee circles and GMO grass seed lines were added. The work responded not only to the physical space but also to the actions enforced by people moving through the space.