ARTIST STATEMENT
Crux explores issues of perception, reality and drug addiction in contemporary and personal contexts. The work incorporates fragmented digital images of smaller constellations arranged to imitate the Southern Cross constellation. Embroidering constellations on drug packages symbolises intertwining these concepts together, while mimicking their appearance in the night sky. Commentary on drug addiction in Australia is often seen as one large issue, when it is actually the sum of smaller, personal stories symbolised by interconnecting the five stars of the Southern Cross constellation. The juxtaposition of moving images creates questions around perception, reality and altered vision.
ARTWORK PROCESS
I utilised my personal stargazing and a phone app as a reference for illustrating constellations. Scanography and embroidery were used to develop my work.I chose to embroider the constellations onto drug packaging using thick string to create symbolic meaning .Water colour was scanned to emulate the bright glow of a nebula.Crux developed from a low relief assemblage incorporating embroidered drug packages and string into gifs which were used repetitively to create a projected looping video.The video display creates a sensory experience that alters perception.
