Pupae

 

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Felted wool & silk, servo motor, Arduino, mechanical components, resin skeleton​

7" amorphous spheroid​

Indication of moving, breathing life inside the cocoon​

Video Link (54 seconds):​

https://youtu.be/0f4ZrWFQrNw​

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          I am creating a series of multiple wool-felted cocoons which utilize digital technologies and mechanics to create an indication of a living, breathing pupa within each cocoon as part of my trauma-informed embodiment practice as a multidisciplinary sculptor. The completed project will be a large-scale installation including all of the multiples breathing together in which audience members may choose to hold Pupae in their hands. 

          This series, titled Pupae, embodies the liminality of both being and not being. In nature, the pupa is an individual undergoing metamorphism, a transformative process of rebuilding the body during a reprieve from external interaction.  A pupa is no longer a caterpillar, but the pupa holds the same DNA as the caterpillar body in which they once walked. While they were still a caterpillar, they had to prepare themself by gathering sufficient nutrients and finding a safe place to build their cocoon. Once they emerge, they are still extremely vulnerable until their wings are dry enough for flight. 

          To hold one of the Pupae evokes a unique response within each member of the audience, ranging from care and compassion to calmness and preciousness to fear and bewilderment. Pupae also evokes questions. What is inside? How does the caterpillar trust that hiding in a cocoon is the right choice? Does the pupa know what is to come? How do roles shift between each chapter in life? What does it mean to exist within the space of leaving behind the familiar?

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