Bellwether, 2021 - Toledo Museum of Art, Toledo, OH
This interactive installation utilizes the invisible conductive coating on NSG TEC glass to build a transparent enclosure that blocks common types of electromagnetic radiation, such as cellular signals, radio transmissions, and WiFi. This shielding structure is known as a Faraday cage, and is widely used in medical applications and sensitive scientific endeavors. It is also a favorite DIY project of conspiracy theorists who believe the government is trying to spy on them, or affect mass mind control through microwave radiation. Inspired by affinities between handmade structures, online conspiracy theories, and new age healing practices, this sculpture immerses participants in a warm, humid space that entertains paranoid sentiments and invites fantasies of isolation, self-reliance, and escape.
Rendering for Bellwether, 2021
This project was developed over the course of 2021 as part of the Momentum/Intersection Fellowship program, a collaboration between The Toledo Museum of Art, NSG Pilkington Glass, and The Arts Commission of Greater Toledo. NSG’s electrically conductive TEC glass is commonly used in grocery store refrigerator and freezer applications, where current is applied to heat the surface of the glass and defrost the windows. I became interested in creating an enclosure that would use this invisible conductive capability to interact with both condensation and electromagnetic radiation, highlighting the ways in which technology is an ever-present but rarely visible aspect of our daily lives.