The Work

           I have always had an infatuation with childhood. I believe that my infatuation can be linked to my own upbringing, and my wishes to never leave childhood. I never wanted to grow old, to enter adulthood where things just did not seem to be that much fun. I do not know where childhood ends, and I am beginning to believe that it does not actually end, we just learn how to suppress childish tendencies beneath the facade of "adult."I have often wondered why childhood and adulthood become so separate that you are either one or the other, an unsurprising trend in a binary world. Certain things are for children, and being adult, or doing adult things, seems to be very separate. But why can we not inhabit both, and what happens when we showcase both at the same time?

            My video piece, "Sudsduction", is a stop-motion work which marries childlike aesthetic with mature themes such as adultery, jealousy, and murder. Since stop-motion and animation are often associated with younger audiences, I decided to present heavier concepts through a puerile lens. "Sudsduction" also points to the gender binary which many, and most, companies fiend to reinforce within their consumer products, as the piece's main characters feature a bottle of men's shampoo and two bottles of women's body wash. These objects are specifically tailored to be consumed by particular genders, as defined by the binary for gender. I used a bathroom as the backdrop and stop-motion studio for the project, before compiling the photos into video. Once compiled, I recorded sound effects for the characters with my own voice, and set the video to "Rondo Alla Turca" by Mozart to enhance both the hectic nature of the piece as well as the aggression within the piece. The piece embodies a sort of "soap opera," including all possible meanings of the phrase.

            In a recent piece, "Poker Face," I further explored stop-motion, advancing from still objects which glide from place to place within the frame to a claymation piece. I created small clay characters- a puppy, bunny, duck, and fox- who sport soft pastel colors and are seated around a table playing poker. Throughout the piece the clay characters appear to be talking to one another, as voices discussing numerous political topics such as healthcare and decision-making/risk-taking bounce with around with each character's movement. The characters eventually begin discussing one's choice, and how it is influenced, and at one point in the piece the voices are all talking at once and begin to cut each other off, making it difficult to discern anything that is being said. The piece ends with each of the characters ripping off a piece of their own body for gambling purposes, for example the duck rips off his beak and places it on the table. The piece is also meant to pair childish nature with complicated or difficult content, content which cute clay characters begin to hash out before they begin to self-mutilate their bodies. I explore this coupling of youth and adult in my work, childish and maturity, as the juxtaposition gives my audience an experience they were not expecting and conveys my message through shock.

            As in "Poker Face," I also explore opposites and contradictions, those which often offer alternative views to systems already in place. In one of my pieces, I addressed the latent morbidity behind the celebration of one's birthday. Celebrating a birthday is often depicted as a happy joyous occasion filled with cake, presents, friends and family, all on the one day dedicated to you and your wishes. I flipped this traditional ritual and response to the day-of-birth in order to draw attention to death's role in the birthday. Gaining a birthday may also mean mourning the loss of another part of oneself. Birthdays celebrate a progression through life, but to what are we progressing, and what are we leaving behind? My installation piece titled, "Happy Birthdays!", is very much of an environmental experience for viewers about growing up, celebrating one's years, and parading the death of youth. The piece is housed in within a dark, enclosed four-wall space consisting of two parts: objects inhabiting the floor and a video projection. The floor is covered in various colorful silhouettes of children playing spaced throughout the room, either pink, blue, green, or yellow. The silhouettes are made of card stock cut in a confetti fashion, outlining each of the tiny bodies. On each of the silhouette's hands, there is a small plastic plate with a single cupcake on it. The cupcake's frosting matches the color of the silhouette's paper and a single black candle burns in the middle of the cupcake. In the silhouette's other hand there is a tiny fork, positioned so that the prongs point towards the cupcake. In the center of the room, there is a single bundle of balloons which correspond to the colors of the silhouettes and frostings. Along the three walls (those without the doorway), there is a three channel projection of an appropriated video which includes a theremin player dressed in black on the center wall, surrounded by a dreary theater on the two end walls. The theremin player is performing the song, "Happy Birthday," on a slowed down loop. The installation begins by lighting the candles on each of the cupcakes and the video playing simultaneously. The room is illuminated by the projection and tiny candles, and the deep bass of the theremin fills the space as the black wax bubbles and drips over the cupcakes until the flames eventually burn out. Once the last candle burns out, the installation is "dead."

            I am an artist who focuses on childhood and the blending of opposites. Though much of my messages are personal in their foundation, my work allows my audience to question how they see things, categorize parts of life, such as childhood and adulthood, and how they feel about various instances in life, such as what feels good or bad, happy or sad. When my work leads my viewers to question the surrounding systems and societal structures which have been imposed upon them, my work succeeds in its ultimate purpose.