Soldier Series (Ṣàngó & Bouquet)
After completing “Baptism,” last July, I reflected on the process of making it—while I loved the result and grew in technical ability through the creation of it, I confirmed that I do not enjoy working in resin. It’s extremely toxic, and it felt irresponsible to be working in this medium. Recognizing that my ongoing interest in hollow forms doesn’t really require the use of resin, I returned to plaster, after years of experimentation with various fabric stiffeners. Returning to the mold I used in for “Grief #3,” I embarked on plaster experiments, resulting in this “Soldier Series.”
At the start of this year, I took some of these experiments and explored the context of the extreme escalations of ICE presence culminating in the disappearance of innocents, murders of protestors, as well as the disruption of SNAP benefits to US citizens across the nation, and the attacks on journalists for reporting on these phenomena. I mused over the diligence required by every citizen to resist in various forms, including having to protect each other, allocate resources, grow our own food, and increase reliance on neighbors in community as government grows less reliable. The work is arduous, and in a way, each one of us is a “soldier,” bearing specific battles each in our own right. Further, the moral quandary of enlisting is ever-present, particularly for the immigration customs enforcement. That the US would later enter a war with Iran as an extension of escalations tied to ongoing genocide of Palestinians only underscored the development of this series.
The “grief” torso felt right to use as a repetitive shape, being that the masculine form is associated with the gender of most soldiers, and that the mass production of mannequins, with no head, arms or legs, emphasizes the objectification and disposability of their/our bodies. “Bouquet,” emerged from a technical failure in making a cast too thin. The torso ripped in half, and lay in a corner in my studio, until one day an idea emerged from an old fabric stiffener experiment. Combining these elements led to the arrangement of the bold color strips leaping from the vase-like torso shape—a whimsical explosion. The image can be read literally, or like the feeling of witnessing the injustices that continue to compound under this administration.
“Ṣàngó” was developed from another imperfect cast—still not quite thick enough, but sturdy enough to hold the shape, and a fitting surface for the applied adornment. This piece feels more honorific to me, an acknowledgement of the protective forces, almost like a “thank you,” to those who have and continue to shield us with their bodies. The design is inspired by the African funereal fabric used in earlier iterations of “Grief,” and ties African cosmology with observant funereal rites.
Stay tuned for more iterations of the “Soldier Series,” as I continue to process the unfolding of American history and experiment with increasingly more ecologically sound materials.
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