Octadic
Ongoing works such as the Ball Mill both regenerate and recycle broken ceramic shards and act as the base material for use in the hydroponic gardens. These hydroponic gardens travel to various communities and offer organic food like chard to families despite the weather, site limitations, or the economic situation.
Such practical garden projects are combined with poetic ceramic+ explorations like Octadic in an effort to not only provide a history lesson but to also ask questions about the place of ceramics in contemporary art.
In Octadic: hand-built and wheel-thrown white stoneware is glazed, decaled, and placed into growth containers. DC plugs and LED light provide liquid light, yet the remainder of this work was fashioned from recycled components and salvaged materials. A do-it-yourself motion sensor activates an air pump, amplifier, and hydrophone while a historical Delft pattern and a live plant is illuminated. The amplified sound generated by this work echoes the melting glaciers caused by global climate change. As the Arctic permafrost melts and releases large amounts of methane into the atmosphere, it creates a carbon feedback loop that triggers additional warming.
Octadic is 82% ceramic materials by weight.