Off to the Woods

Heading out to the ACRE residency in Wisconsin today. Very much looking forward to eleven days of meeting new people, creating new work, and getting away from the smelly city.

The Documentation of "If Nature Could Talk"

For those who did not get a chance to make it to the event/exhibition of If Nature Could Talk. Installation, details, and photographs follows. Click on images for larger views. 

Spoke Gallery

119 N. Peoria St.

3D

Chicago, IL

Bridgewater, New Hampshire: Dr. Kerry Nixon, Clean Coal Technology

Dr. Kerry Nixon’s invention introduces the cheap and effective means for everyday individuals to produce their own clean coal. Presented will be three samples of Nixon’s various means in producing clean coal. Coinciding with the presentation visitors will have the opportunity to try the simple means of Nixon’s clean coal invention. Accompanying the three samples visitors are invited to participate and experience the easy to use means of producing clean coal. 

Austin, Texas: Ronald Johnson, Talking Plants

Ronald Johnson invention is a plant translator designed to transmit electrical impulses of plant life into electrical signals. These signals are then translated into corresponding words. Viewers will get a chance to listen in on three separate plants internal dialog.

 Ozark, Missouri: Jeanette Ambs, Fortune Tree

Jeanette Ambs invention introduces what could only be called a fortune tree. The tree was designed in Ambs Fenton based greenhouse through painstaking grafting techniques and splicing of several RNA strands from various trees. The unique tree is designed to bud on the full moon of every month producing several bulbs containing what Ambs states resemble small typed messages. The messages are usually composed of only a few words with content that resembles the tiny messages one finds in fortune cookies. Visitors will have the opportunity to pluck the uncanny fruit from the fortune tree.

Prescott, New Mexico: Abitha Simon, Seed Bomb

Abitha Simon’s invention uses mold, seed bombs, and grass to decipher what plants want to tell us. Simon’s starts with a grafting process that introduces classic literary works with either mold or seeds. After weeks of cultivation the texts are removed from the greenhouse and screened for those parts of the page that remain free of plant or microbial life. With a simple manner of deduction what letters and words are left untouched are the subtle communications of a plant life “natural” communication.

Pevely, Missouri: Denise Brooks, Natural Symbolism

 

Denise Brook’s invention couples psychologist Hermann Rorschach inkblot experiments, and three unique sources of light to deduce the characteristics or thought patterns of nature. A simple device projects light onto the plant casting its shadow onto a piece of paper. The user traces the shadow resulting in a kind of drawn shadowgram. Visitors will be allowed to project one of three light sources (tungsten, fluorescent, daylight balanced) towards a plant and trace the resulting shadow.