Amensalism (OCADU Undergraduate Thesis Work)

Year: 2022-23
Materials: Watercolour Paper, Alcohol Markers, Masking Tape, Plaster Wrap, Electrical Wires, Circular Canvases, Hot Glue, Black paint, Glosses, Mounted on 65" x 45" Half Inch Plywood.

Amensalism [ey-men-suh-liz-uhm] Noun-Ecology: A biological interaction wherein one organism causes harm to another without any cost or benefits to itself.

Amensalism is my undergraduate thesis work, which personifies illness and trauma through the lens of a biological wire structure consuming the human form. It was my way of exploring and revisiting hard moments and realities of my past, and making a physical representation of moments where it felt like I wouldn't be able to survive these experiences. The self portrait aspects of this piece were done with watercolour paper and alcohol markers, being integrated into a 3D wire sculpture consuming these pieces. Each individual wire was cut, shaped, and glued onto a sculpted plaster wrap base, giving the impression of muscle fibres and a more biological look. This piece took 8 months to create, spanning over 2 thesis semesters