Ratswing, 2024
UV printed resin, steel, hardware, acrylic. 12″x24″x9″
$12,000
Boundary ecologies are a longstanding focus of my work, particularly the way we fear and revile the animals who dwell there. It makes sense; the incoming rat implies the dissolution of the way we’ve shaped our world to create comfort and safety. Yet, there’s something beautiful reflected in these creatures as well. They grow from us, extend us, interface us with larger ecosystems. At times, we bring them in – some rats are loved pets, some have been instrumental in key medical studies. This swing puts them into usage again – an undercurrent of disgust and grit turned to lift a rider into the sky, a moment of contemplation or childish nostalgia. The work contains the tension between glamor/play and dirtiness/disgust, but its deeper feeling is of unification, of assimilating this outgrowth and feeling its strength.
IG: @elijah.ober
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