Radiolaria
The series began with hand drawings based on Ernst Haeckel’s 1862 illustrations of microscopic sea creatures. Mental deconstruction of the zooplankton during the hand drawing phase morphed the creatures into flat layers which would later become a 3D form. CAD software ingested the layer drawings and was used to further modify and output individual layer files for a laser cutting machine. Each rough-cut sterling silver layer was hand textured and finished before the Radiolaria was rebuilt with industrially produced stainless steel screws and nuts. Offcut hide and suede from a local leather artist sandwiched between 2 of the 3 layers adds a colorful hand formed element to some of the Radiolaria.
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An illustration from Ernst Haeckel’s “Art Forms in Nature” sat on my workbench for years as I considered how to share the beauty of these microscopic sea creatures by bringing his complex drawings to life in metal. The Radiolarian series’ proof-of-concept was break-through etched with traditional methods. Seeking a more environmentally friendly option, I built an electrolytic etch system with water leveraging the renewable nature of cupric nitrate when used with sterling silver. To reduce water resource use and further embody the mutative effects of industrialization on all sea life, I morphed the process once more. Contaminants in our oceans induce genetic mutations. Corporations alter nature via genetically modified organisms. The Radiolaria are wearable portrayals of the stories within our oceans and mixing the organic with the industrial in the pieces and their creation process was the goal. Computer based manipulations of my digitized hand drawings allows for both creative freedom and gives the advantage provided by industrialization to precisely align the designs and all the screw holes on multiple layers at once. Locating a laser machine able to cut sterling silver was the final step incorporating modern industrial methods into Radiolaria art to wear.