We are Flesh, Fat, and Blood.
Looping digital video, installed with wood frame.
Looping digital video, installed with wood frame.
The Guerra family was gracious enough to invite me to flesh and tan her hide-a process that is long, tedious and ongoing. I have spent hours caring for what remains of her body, of her. My experiences with Shy-Anne have been incredibly unique. Though she was not my pet, I have known her in a variety of ways and circumstances that no other human has. Through ritual, my relationship with her transcends death. I find a tactile method of grieving.
It brings the Trough performance full-circle.
Acknowledging that I am in a position of power in this particular relationship, the previous work, Trough, sought to reverse this traditional power structure between human and animal. I placed my body in a submissive position. A sculpture, which acts as an extension of my body, allowed the cows to eat from me. Would her tragic and unexpected death have been in vain if the humans around her had simply buried all 1,200 lbs of her? She was a much-loved pet, the more fiesty of the two cows the Guerra family kept.