Artist Statement

I am a hybrid creator cultivating an arts research practice that is inter / transdisciplinary, intersecting art and design with science and technology. As an educator, I am committed to fostering collaboration across academia to engage with industry, local communities, and vulnerable ecosystems. My work explores the complexity sprawl caused by the collision of biological and technological systems.  This confluence of technology and biology inspires alluring puzzles of wonderment; guiding my audience to actively explore overwhelming problems such as climate change, through digestible, multi-sensory experiences.

I founded the Coaction Lab as a vehicle for collaboration, where art, iterative design and technology meet living systems with empathy and awareness. As with the courses that I teach, the Coaction Lab facilitates the development of individualized design and prototyping processes that provide a method for insightful collaboration and adaptive system modelling.  These processes begin with research, deep listening, and ideation, followed by an evolving loop of scale prototypes, user testing and reflection. The lab creates biomimicry based interactive systems and coactive attempts to collaborate with living systems such as pairing bio and eco sensors with bioluminescent phytoplankton or building, sculptural floating island ecosystems to rebalance nutrient loads in retention ponds. The ecological foundation of the lab is supported by sustainable material research and alternative energy options to power the work. We use biodegradable materials such as 3D printing filament made from corn, algae, clay and coffee and we laser cut silk, latex rubber and seaweed. We create custom blends of emerging and traditional technology such as casting 3D prints into glass and bronze, forming hybrid methodologies that speak to both the past and the present. By employing the medium of light focused through video projection mapping / shared VR systems, we illuminate alternative screens and architectural structures, transforming a myriad of surfaces into three-dimensional storytelling space. The Coaction Lab works with local communities, producing immersive, projection mapping, performance, and sound-based events at locations such as the Cameron Art Museum in Wilmington, NC, the Santa Cruz Lighthouse on the mid-coast of California, the Thomas Hill Standpipe in Bangor, Maine, the original site of the Black Mountain College at Lake Eden in Western North Carolina and at the University of Alexandria in Alexandria, Egypt. These events build new bridges between the University, local communities, non-profits, artists, and scientists, sharing vocabularies while also widening perspectives.  My goal is to leave lasting reverberations that tell original stories, foster synergy and reflect forward thinking.