Echoes in Time

Abstract

Echoes in Time is a visual archive of fossil-like sculptures moulded from bioplastic and wood ash. Displayed in a linear sequence, the age of the objects becomes apparent. The timeline reveals itself as the most recently cast objects are larger and glossier, while others show evidence of fungal growth. At the far end of the linear installation, fungal growth lies dormant on the dehydrated and shrunken sculpture-substrate. For me, this timeline references the Earth's strata, with younger rock formations closer to the planet's surface containing evidence of human existence, such as our debris and plastic waste. Homo sapiens have occupied only a tiny fraction of the Earth’s geological timeline, a fact marked in this installation by a small section of sculptures with a blue patina. Made from plant material, this hue is naturally fleeting and prone to fading.

Similar to plastiglomerates, a material indicator of the Anthropocene formed when melted plastic fuses with sand, rock, and organic debris to create a new stone-like composite, Echoes in Time congeals the natural and the synthetic. In this work, these elements coexist within a single form. The bioplastic casts originate from wooden matrices, or mother objects, assembled from vineyard and orchard prunings that I cut and bind to reveal human influence. The inclusion of wood ash in these sculptures intertwines matter and meaning. As a filler to the bioplastic, it helps to minimise the use of other raw materials and provides a stone-like or fossilised visual quality to the casts. Gathering the wood ash from my fireplace further valorises this material, which is usually discarded. Although the ash may conjure biblical ideas of loss and mourning, the sculptures become a substrate for microbial proliferation, suggesting their decomposition. Although the microbial growth indicates decay, I see it as evidence that my sculptures and their materials possess a vitality that extends beyond my original intentions. The ‘death’ of the plastic object sustains life in a different form. It gives me hope that the materials I used came from the Earth and will return to it, allowing me to reverse the permanence problem of plastic and imagine gentle, hopeful ways of working with the environment. The presence of microbial growth challenges my practice. Preservation of the work and control of the material make way for change, acceptance and even surprise.