From the artist's
website:
Each body becomes an index of passing time. Bones shift, muscles loosen,
freckles and wrinkles form, bruises appear; skin is the forum for these
transitions. It may also evidence sensitivity, embarrassment, discomfort, fear,
excitement, infection, health, attraction, and energy expendedreflecting
vulnerability and conditions weve inhabited.
My own skin frequently blushes and swells. I have dermatographia, a condition
in which ones immune system exhibits hypersensitivity, via skin, that releases
excessive amounts of histamine, causing capillaries to dilate and welts to
appear (lasting about thirty minutes) when the skins surface is lightly
scratched. This allows me to painlessly draw patterns and words on my skin,
which I then photograph.
I also make wallpaper with photographs of my skin cut into various designs.
The patterns I use range from adaptations of Greek and Etruscan vases, Medieval
wall coverings, and Renaissance pottery to contemporary clothing and wallpaper
found in domestic spaces. Attached to the wall or onto board, these skin designs
form shifting crimson patterns embellishing the surfaces. Recently Ive turned
some of the patterns made from photographs of skin into temporary tattoos,
adorning my skin with the translucent designs. These tattoo designs cover me
like clothing, an intimate fashion. They also go on the wall or window after
theyve made contact with my skin, leaving traces of cells and hair, and holding
a record of skins map. I share these designs with my surroundings.
I am investigating where one surface ends and another begins, the bloom of
adornment, and how shifting exteriors reveal as they
conceal.
