Fragmentation is a meandering three-section piece based on the
map of San Luis Potosi, Mexico, a state where rainforest clear cuts are
threatening many bird species and indigenous languages. The feathers in this
piece are made from plastic recycled bags screen printed with images of
endangered birds of Mexico and Colombia and overprinted with text in endangered
languages from Latin America.
In this
piece, the feathers are cut into feather-like shapes. In order to have a
smaller studio footprint, I collect most of my scraps and use them rather than
add to the landfill, thereby becoming part of the problem. Here I have cut some
of the scraps into small, rounded feathers that echo the neck plumage of
pheasants in order to create more variety. I build all of my pieces on a background of
thick pellon. In Fragmentation, I
have left some of the background uncovered allowing viewers to see more of my
process and give the eye some quiet negative spaces to rest.