2019
hand-spun laboratory llama wool, orphaned keys, vinyl wall text
dimensions variable
Boundary invites viewers to “move gently” through a doorway veiled in yarn spun from the wool of laboratory llamas. This prompt to pass from one space to another is paired with text appropriated from “Molecular and Cell Biology For Dummies” by Rene Fester Kratz. The modified excerpt highlights the language of biological metaphors grounded in narratives of national security. As viewers pass through the doorway, they are greeted with text that equates plasma membranes with “international boundaries” and casts proteins as “customs officers”. While moving the yarns, chiming keys at the end of each strand alert visitors inside the room of their entry.
Boundary invites viewers to “move gently” through a doorway veiled in yarn spun from the wool of laboratory llamas. This prompt to pass from one space to another is paired with text appropriated from “Molecular and Cell Biology For Dummies” by Rene Fester Kratz. The modified excerpt highlights the language of biological metaphors grounded in narratives of national security. As viewers pass through the doorway, they are greeted with text that equates plasma membranes with “international boundaries” and casts proteins as “customs officers”. While moving the yarns, chiming keys at the end of each strand alert visitors inside the room of their entry.
...Through a diverse range of media and techniques, Laura Splan weaves a multifarious narrative of science. At times, Splan’s work brings to mind the Brothers Grimm, the miller’s daughter spinning straw into gold, a transmutation of material through manual labor and a bit of magic, unlocking secrets through a process of attribution...
Project Support provided by The Science Center Bioart Residency, Integral Molecular, Esther Klein Gallery, The Knight Foundation
Exhibitions include Esther Klein Gallery
Orphaned and off-cut keys donated by Billy’s Locksmith, WR Hardware, Four Seasons Hardware
