the static, the steam, the smoke

Video

4:00

2021

In the static, the steam, the smoke, I weave together imagery, audio and text related to bull kelp of California, wildfire atmospheres, memory loss, and airborne atmospheric communication from plants through volatile organic compounds. Bull kelp, common on the west coast, contain a small bulb of carbon monoxide to keep them afloat; too much carbon monoxide in the air can cause memory loss. I use this as a starting point to consider the cultural amnesia required to continue to the harmful practices of settler colonialism. The piece grows from previous works related to airborne communication, the materiality of communication, a focus on the receiver, and the shared communicative and political airspace of plants and humans.

Screenings/Exhibitions

Uncommon Senses III: Back to the Future of the Senses Virtual Art Gallery, Centre for Sensory Studies, Concordia University, Montreal, 2021

Climate Exchange: Berlin / Chicago / Frankfurt / Madison, Winter is Alive, online/in person, 2021