Tuesday, January 5, 2021

Mapping

Happy New Year. I hope the 2021 will bring bright hopes, good health, peace and justice for all of us. As I write this, my mind is on Georgia right now.

Looking back on the epic year 2020, the highlight of my artistic activities was being able to install a solo show. Such things are difficult during the pandemic, but I enjoyed every minute of installing the show while wearing a mask. I was re-energized with this prospect of sharing my work with people (in-person and in real space) and realized how important it was for me to feel connected this way. Even though the exhibit was open to the Rivers School community only, but not to the public due to the Covid-19 pandemic, the exhibit was enjoyed by students and faculty at the Rivers School. I particularly enjoyed several positive comments from the students while I was installing “Field Notes, II,” a room-size installation in one of the galleries. 

 

Room size installation of black and white images composed of layers of scientific writings. Layers of prints are on the floor except for one long scroll attached to the wall.
Field Notes, II
Archival pigment print on Tyvek and vellum
98"x 240"x 180"
2016 - 2020

In order to share my work beyond the Rivers School community, I created a virtual exhibit site, so that anybody can view the exhibit from the comfort of their home.

Mapping” opened at the Rivers School in Weston, Massachusetts on October 19th. 

 

A series of mostly black and white drawings on the wall
"Extinction Studies" series

As an artist, making art in the studio has been tremendously helpful for me in sustaining a sense of normalcy in my life during the pandemic. My work kept me grounded, so to speak, literally working on a drawing on the floor every day. The life of confinement also gave me new ways of thinking and looking at my old work, and I saw it as an opportunity to experiment with my old work.
 
I presented a couple of new works and new “old” works in this exhibit. The new works are two map drawings from “Extinction Studies” series that are based on historical maps of the Adirondacks in northern New York state.

 

Black and white ink drawing with a large circle filled in black with small speckles of white texts. The black circle indicates the Adirondacks. Diptych
Map of Adirondack Wilderness, 1888
India ink, walnut ink, and ink on paper
86"x 70" (diptych)
2019
 

Two new “old” pieces came out of my reflection on science and belief during the pandemic. “Field Notes, II” is an installation that is composed with images of scientific writings that were hand traced from the whiteboards during my residency at the Broad Institute of MIT and Harvard in 2016–2017. While there I learned that science is rigorous. Scientific knowledge as we come to know it is the result of countless days, months, and years of experiments by scientists working in the lab. Science, as I observed, is driven by the desire to understand the unknown and the courage to go in search of things that might not be knowable. This was where I, as an artist, felt closely in sync with scientists about the way we do our work. This installation, “Field Notes, II,” with layers of the scientific ideas and writings being laid on the floor, calls attention to what makes the groundwork for future scientific discoveries.

 

Close up of the digital print showing black and white images that were composed of scientific writings
Field Notes, II, detail


When there are no treatments available, what do we do, where do we go, and how do we deal with the disease, both physically and mentally? I have been asking myself these questions since the pandemic started. We’ve been living with these questions for several months now. In “Accrescence,” which means continual growth, magic spells from ancient medical papyrus were deployed to create new meanings. I included  these magic spells in my work in the past, but the pandemic made me go back to them and look at them in a different way. In this iteration, magic spells (laser cut on vellum) are presented by layering old and found papers that have histories and meanings for me into new and singular works. In this work, layering became important to me. Adding layers of histories to these magic spells, our desire to want to believe in medical treatment is never lost then or now, whether magic spells for ancient people or prayers and hope for vaccines during the pandemic in the 21st century. To me, these pieces speak quietly as a prayer.


 

Installation showing five pieces on the wall. Mostly white with vellum piece on top of other papers.
Accrescence
Installation view
Laser cut on vellum and found papers
Approx. 20"x 14" each
2016-2020


Mapping is one way we come to understand the world by organizing and systemizing layers of information. This organizing helps us understand the scope of data and information in a visual way. But maps do not remain unchanged. To an artist, maps are starting points for new interpretations, experiments, inventions, and actions. In this exhibit, I presented several different bodies of work that are related to mapping and maps. The collecting and organizing of layers of information in science, and the weaving of histories can be seen as my attempt to understand the unknown as well as the time we are in.

 

Thank you for reading and for your ongoing support.
Please stay safe and healthy.

 

 

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