I’m curious about the human habits of consumption and disposal that arise out of our material-heavy culture: contrasting and overlapping rituals such as collecting, amassing, hoarding, organizing, cataloging, displaying, disposing or purging. The ways we as individuals distinguish between objects of value and refuse are highly subjective and nuanced. I make sculpture and installation as a means to contemplate how and why we as humans attribute value to material things. These interests have led to an exploration into spaces where things pile up; in spaces such as people’s homes, museums, landfills, construction sites, thrift stores, and free piles, the histories and functions of objects become entangled or obscured.
Living in a world where material objects overwhelm so much our lives, my work is driven by a compulsion to manipulate the existing world of things. In this way I am able to maintain some control over the ever-encroaching material world. By crafting intricate and refined modes of display, I challenge and assess the significance of objects and things that we see on a daily basis. I’m interested in highlighting existing ironies through presentation, taking the everyday refuse of our culture and examining it within the rarified arena of the museum or the commercial allure of the department store.
Within these fabricated displays, I initiate and oversee sculptural systems that lead to the production and categorization of new or altered objects. These systems often require my own participation or the participation of others in labor-driven tasks, resulting in the creation of objects that are partially informed by chance. Through methodical forms of making I highlight (my) labor as performance and the objects I make as byproducts of an act. The implementation of such elaborate systems creates a narrative of value around the objects being produced. The products of these labors formally stand as sculptures on their own, bearing the marks of an assiduous worker. While the tasks I perform often involve breaking or taking things apart, they are not destructive acts but rather constructive revelations. By making this part of my creative process public and inviting participation, I examine how people attribute value to time and labor as well as their material surroundings.