My work deals with anthropology in art; how humans interact with nature and technology. From the time of the first humans our species has been seeking ways to capture, store, and use energy from nature. Our first tools were made of stone, our first meals from plants and animals, our first shelter in trees or geological structures. In the modern era with technology rapidly creating new things to remove us farther from nature, my work serves as a reminder of our origins and primitive habits. I feel that it is important to think about the world around us, and look into and beyond the form and function of our 'resources' and seem them in a new light.
Playing with nature and old technology, and by comparing and contrasting their histories, my goal is to open up a stage for acknowledgment of the materials and their form. Using earthen materials and bits of our outdoors, I play a sort of ode to their forms and transplant them indoors, allowing them to intrude on our comfort spaces. Taking a piece of the outdoors and transplanting it in an artificial space, the part of nature stands out in the foreign environment raising questions to why it is there and why is it important enough to be on display.
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Contact:
mgates_udel.edu
1 302 220 8503
