The Decay Process – multimedia (28cm x 10cm x 8cm)
I used the work I had started concerning fruit preservation to create another piece in my investigation using sculpture. For this I wanted to focus on the different stages of the decaying process, seeing as I had only focused thus far on the before and after of this process.
Development
When thinking about this project I wanted to look into more organic and natural subjects. For this I chose the fruit pears as they symbolise longevity.
I explored the idea of literal deconstruction – as opposed to natural deconstruction – through the mosaic forms shown, taking photos and turning them into a new piece.
This piece, focused on the changing of a subject and keeping this frozen in time. I therefore wanted to focus on how nature deconstructs, looking at the decomposition of the pears at different points in time.
After leaving my chosen subject for some time to decay, I wanted to look at the changing process of decay with links to how we cannot change this process.
Final Piece
For my object, I used clay to create the final piece. I displayed the process of decay through four pears and painted them with acrylic. The mouldiest of these I then glued clumps of stained cotton to. I think that this display showed the change and a comparison of all the stages well.
I moulded lumps of clay into the same shape as the original pears and then hollowed these out so they wouldn’t explode in the kiln. For the more rotten pears I created the fresh form first, next took away clay added texture to create the decaying subjects.
I also wanted to convey a message with this piece. For this, I vacuum formed the sculpture with clear acrylic to represent the failings of preservation and perfection, linking to Janet Fish. The viewing of these different stages next to each other presents the impact that time has on us and the fact we are unable to change this. The clear plastic hugging the form cements this idea as we’re not able to reach the clay i.e we are not able to change how time will change us and what is around us.