I have started work on a new series. It will be a collection of 4 or more pieces. These will be 30 feet high, 15 feet wide, yarn cross stitch on blue debris netting. They are meant for indoors to be hung from the ceiling, 6 inches off the ground. Still. Like walls. The blue references the sky and gives a light to the piece.
The pieces are 4 times larger than the common human body. It is meant to be looming at the same time draw the viewer in, and then draw the viewer to look through.
Each piece will be of a plant that helped fund the independence of the USA. Because of cotton, sugar, rice and tobacco, the United States was able to fund its independence. Those crops were harvested by people whose ancestors still have to fight for the right to vote in this country. It is why I am on this continent.
Because AI is a part of our immediate experience, these images are sourced from AI program with prompts to create images with roots, leaves, stems and flowers. In the past I sourced several images to make a single image with these elements. This series will use AI to do that. Because there are many images of flower and leave of the plants, and few of the roots, the images are really interesting to look at. They do a reflect a collective unconsious of what these plants look like.
I am starting with cotton. It is a fantastic image with the bolls (cotton balls) inserted in the root ball. The boll is not singular like in reality, but mimics a flower with 5 leaves. The flower of the cotton plant can be pink, and this image has a beautiful pink cast. I love this image and can’t wait to see it bigger than my body.
detail of source image for new series
Most days I play with different prompts to find images that are inspiring. I understand how dangerous AI is. It is also reflective of what we create images of. People with 3 boobs and 2 penises I don’t find interesting. Seeing how we view nature through the images we create and collect is.
The title comes from thinking about how I, how we got here.How agriculture, slavery, need for autonomy created this nation. How this nation has forgotten that.