Several large-scale sculptures rotate quietly, their iridescent colors shimmering and changing with their movement in space. Visible here is the resemblance to bioluminescent marine life—especially in their recast surfaces—or new futuristic beings. But they are in fact industrial objects: drill bits used to find oil, enlarged in scale. Their dichroic colors allude to the rainbow hues reflected on the surface of petroleum itself, but they also mimic the sheen of pearls in a nod towards the pearling industry of the Persian Gulf, a forgotten history that has all but disappeared since the discovery of oil in the region. Through their colors and forms, these works draw together the relationship between pearls and oil, presenting more vividly the historical gap that oil has created. The iridescent nature of the color reimagines itself as the carrier of wealth, traveling between pearls, oil, and even on to other future beings.
Commissioned by Kunsthaus Bregenz
Several large-scale sculptures rotate quietly, their iridescent colors shimmering and changing with their movement in space. Visible here is the resemblance to bioluminescent marine life—especially in their recast surfaces—or new futuristic beings. But they are in fact industrial objects: drill bits used to find oil, enlarged in scale. Their dichroic colors allude to the rainbow hues reflected on the surface of petroleum itself, but they also mimic the sheen of pearls in a nod towards the pearling industry of the Persian Gulf, a forgotten history that has all but disappeared since the discovery of oil in the region. Through their colors and forms, these works draw together the relationship between pearls and oil, presenting more vividly the historical gap that oil has created. The iridescent nature of the color reimagines itself as the carrier of wealth, traveling between pearls, oil, and even on to other future beings.
Commissioned by Kunsthaus Bregenz