Space Junk (2023)
Medium: Acrylic paint, spray paint, acrylic marker, gold leaf foil, aluminum wire, epoxy glue, gold leaf adhesive, Apoxie clay, solid marble
Clay type: Apoxie Sculpt Clay - 2 part Modeling Compound
Details:
Winsor & Newton acrylic paints
Mounted on 100% pure white marble
GOLDEN spray paints
Signed certificate of authenticity
Professional grade archival quality materials
Size: 10” x 19.5”
Description: Ahhh, what an experience is was to create my first mixed media mixeabstract sculpture! There are so many interesting moments throughout the creative process that made me feel a different sense of fulfillment…the most important being that I had created something (very very very weird haha) that has never existed in this universe before, in 3D. The process of putting something together that exists in a 3D space required all angles and aspects of the composition to make sense, unlike a 2D painting on canvas.
My style of artwork is very abstract and falls under the style called “expressionism” where emotions, feelings, and thoughts are expressed unapologetically onto a canvas. This process requires free flow spontaneous additions of layering onto the composition as I continue to create, something that in its nature is unplanned and intuitive. Now, this style of creativity is much easier to execute on a canvas due to the ability to simply paint over a section that I may not like, regardless of the level of abstraction and spontaneous mistakes. Transferring this process to sculpture work is quite difficult as in order for the piece to stay propped up and in alignment, it needs to be planned and balanced…however my style is very abstract and unpanned haha! Thus, my experience of trying to create my geometrical style into 3D art has been both frustrating and liberating.
This sculpture called ‘Space Junk’ aims to literally depict those words through the mixed media rings of Saturn orbiting around a golden planet, which is attached to a arch hovering between another circle connected to a probe like piece protruding from different angles, with a massive multicolored circle that has colours of nebulas and craters painted around it, all mounted on 100% sold white marble.
As I approached completion of this sculpture, it began to remind me of recent literature I had been reading by NASA around literally millions of pieces of space junk that orbits our planet and the conversation around whether we as humans are beginning to pollute space, as we have our own planet. This piece aims to evoke the question to the viewer of the impact that humans have on our planet and beyond and whether it is worth the risks. For example, many argue that without the incredible advances made through the space program over decades of technological developments, we would not have many of the life saving technologies around the globe which have benefited humanity in countless ways. Some examples include heart pumps, programmable pacemakers fiber-optic catheters to perform laser angioplasty, and digital imaging breast biopsy used to detect breast cancer. Contrastingly, others argue the funds allocated to the space program research and development could be used to help circumvent more pressing current issues facing humanity, such as poverty. What is your perspective on this introspective debate?
Fun fact! This sculpture was liked by one of NASA’s visual strategists who works on the 3D renderings and artworks for the NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory and the European Space Agency!
Unavailable: This sculpture was such a fun project to work on. It is currently unavailable. However if you are interested in this crazy creation, I would love to have a chat! :)