Picking, bleeding
2015-2016
site specific installation, wall and floors removed through placing dots of hot glue on a wall and then prying them off with a metal spatula, over and over
I created Picking, Bleeding in my first year of graduate school at RISD over only a two week period. I basically lived in that room. In this piece, I was thinking about the wall as skin as I removed small specific portions over and over again from the wall and floor through placing and removing dots of hot glue on the wall. Each moment formed part of a swarm and an open, exposed wound. Part of the experience that was frightening with this piece was that it was meant to sublimate (sublimination- the redirection of socially unacceptable thoughts/urges for the purpose of art) against the walls, but, ultimately, through the rigor of the process, my hands blistered and, in some places, bled. I also recall accidentally when I boiled a pot of hot glue and accidentally spilt it on my leg and hand and then had to remove that. Ultimately, the process became too close to be cathartic or beneficial to me as a person. It was meant to be controlled and separated, but it felt like it was blending into my real life and body. The wall became a mirror not only imaginarily, but in actuality. The space oscillated between nest and hostility.
The project was completed not only quickly, but in secrecy. Because, it wasn't exactly allowed. To avoid surveillance and the possible halting of the project, I worked in the wee hours of the day loudly and during the day, I worked as quietly as possible to avoid human contact. I literally worked at the margins. There was no door directly leading into my studio so complete privacy was impossible. After the project was complete ,I noticed that when working under the possible view of people my marks became more uniform, mechanical and ordered, and in the deeper areas of the room, my marks became more layered and frenzied. While I was working once, there was a safety inspection and they were notified. My Graduate Program Director got an email that student is picking off all their walls, but it is "not technically against any rules".
Panorama views of entire room after picking
Bag of white and grey glue dots, these are the pieces of the white wall and grey floor that were pried off
After my first year at RISD ended, I had to change studios and clean up my space. That change required me to remove my artwork, which required a complete transformation of the architecture of the room. I peeled all the paint from the walls in skins and also cut drywall out from the wall....
