#framingthebodyfinal

For the project my original idea was to make a normal 4 sided cage using the wood and then to decorate it with chains and locks for aesthetics. However i didn't have enough wood to make 4 sides and was only able to make 2 but instead of using more wood to make the rest i came up with the idea to make it a cage in spirit instead. The idea is supposed to be is that i believe i am trapped inside a cage in my own little world with my game console even though it is obvious to anyone who sees me that that is clearly not the case but that i am just refusing to see the truth and am instead choosing to remain safe in the fake cage I've created for myself.

Statement: For this project, I wanted to create a giant shoe that I could sit into. This shoe is suppose to represent a somewhat shielded space for my body. I initially wanted it to look like a Converse, but it ended up looking more like a ballerina shoe. This is because of the ribbons that I used for the laces and the shape of it all. The project ended up being very fragile and not “protective”, which gave it a whole different meaning of how one’s shell may be weaker than expected. One’s vulnerability peeks through. I also dressed in black as if to act as a black sock inside a black shoe.

This piece was very fun to do and perform. I since added luggage straps for the support on my shoulders, created the rib vest out of an old shirt and air dry clay. Finally as to add a performative element I drew small hearts on wood and started giving them out to classmates. The piece was supposed to embody the fear every artist has of opening themselves to an audience, to be seen and be known. Your insides are something deeper than simple nakedness and to lay open for people is the biggest act of vulnerability, in a literal sense I was opening myself and offering my heart up to people I barely knew.

This is my submission for the Framing The Body assignment, which I titled “Ghost Simulator”. I finished the intended design and applied the shower curtain as the last step. Fitting with the theme of “to hide”, I hid myself in the shower curtain to demonstrate how the design worked in conjunction with its theme. I explained in the critique that the piece was to act as a “safe space” to whoever felt like they needed to hide from the world. I believe that I succeeded with this idea and developed it to make it the best that it could be.

I chose the verb “to store” and decided to make a frame with the intention of quite literally storing a body, in this case, myself. I made the dimensions to perfectly fit my body, therefore, it is an intimate peice. I wanted to concentrate on the naturalness of the material itself, the organic nature of the wood. Therefore, the coffin is shown to be decaying back into its original, natural state...back to the original wood. The theme of death, decay, and growth is additionally shown by the paint that was purposefully done in a way the original wood is “growing” back out. Additional materials used was cardboard, twigs, and moss to further work with the idea of naturalism, deriving similarly from the same source of the wood. It can also be seen just as the wood clearly shows its story of decay and its revival, the cardboard also speaks for itself with the “U-Haul” logo ironically on it. This piece was versatile, it can be framed both standing up or on the floor as shown.