Just Browsing is an ongoing sculptural and video installation. The work will feature a block of prosthetic skin, partially wrapped in a thick, hand woven blanket. Next to the block a screen will play a video of a human-like object slowly breathing.
I am interested in the body's growing mediation through digital spaces, a pre-existing phenomenon which has been exacerbated due to coronavirus. The work considers the role of enforced rest due to restricted movement, and the dissociative affect this has on our relationships to our bodies. Socialisation becoming exclusively digital meant whether on a work Skype call, or flicking through tinder our bodies were constantly defined in relation to their digital representation. To scroll through Grindr is to have potential romantic or sexual partners codified through a grid. Squares of torsos cut the soft edges of the body into boxes to pick and choose from.
In the wake of the pandemic, having a physical sculpture 'watch' a digital rendition breath perhaps mirrors a new found skepticism we have towards an essential part of life, and perhaps channels a sense of voyeurism or wariness about these basic bodily functions.