Carried on Both Sides
In collaboration with Caroline Woolard, Helen Lee and Lika Volkova
(2016) Dimensions variable. Blown glass, borosilicate glass, cherry wood column blow mold, silver currency, neon sign, flame-proof kevlar garment, etched glass plate, single channel video projection, sound.
Carried on Both Sides examines the past, present, and future of the @ sign in an installation that features a short film, a web app, and series of sculptural objects. Carried on Both Sides traces the transmutation of a 6th century handmade vessel to the contemporary dimensionless, and infinitely scalable glyph used ubiquitously in electronic communication.
In this trajectory, a vessel used for trade in the Roman empire becomes a standard unit of measure which, in turn, becomes an accounting symbol that finds its way onto keyboards and input devices in the 20th century. This symbol transforms into the digital preposition used in email/social media most commonly accessed through the touch of a finger on glass. This body of work speculates the potential future of the symbol and its current role in the insomnia produced by constant digital connectivity.
The project was featured on PBS / Art21’s New York Close Up in the winter of 2016.
Photos by Ben Orozco