Pixels, 2006
Installation
Degree Show
Edinburgh College of Art, Edinburgh
Notes
Pixels was the culmination of my graduate studies at Edinburgh College of Art. My main concerns at the time were Craft, exploring ways of occupying space and producing an unfixed environment that transformed over the duration of the exhibition.
The installation was comprised of latex helium balloons, each with a tail of iridescent sequins strung on silver thread. Strands of the sequined threads were also attached to the walls to produce a shimmering curtain that blended visually with the airborne strands, and responded to touch and drafts in the space. Visitors to the installation usually interacted with the soft materials by pulling the balloons down (to watch them float back up) or by releasing pent-up aggression on those nearest the ground.
Over the course of the show the balloons gradually deflated, lost their surface lustre and sank toward the floor - some loners, carried away when windows and doors were opened or closed, were found in nearby studios or wandering the corridors.
The title Pixels referred to my use of thousands of tiny units (the sequins) to fill the exhibition space. An alternate title for the work was Sometimes I cling to the heater even when it's cold. Accompanying the installation was a sculptural work titled A lot of what it takes... (pictured on the next artworks page) and a digital print of a man's bum cheeks covered with multi-coloured confectionary sprinkles titled Hundreds and Thousands (not pictured).
Pixels, 2006
Installation view
Pixels, 2006
Installation view
Pixels, 2006
Installation view
Pixels, 2006
Latex helium balloons, sequins, silver thread