Man has invented tools such as the Mars Exploration Rovers and the For Dummies book series to understand his universe. We analyze deep space with the Very Large Array, explore another planet with Mars Rovers, survey the outside world with surveillance cameras, and investigate ourselves with mirrors. I make ad hoc abstractions to explore my universe. Plywood crystalline-forms combined with light and electronics act as low-tech vehicles for discovery.

I paint the plywood sculptures with an idealized version of the actual plywood underneath. This faux finish shifts our values and tweaks our perceptions. Inexpensive materials pose as precious materials. I approach the watercolor paper as a building resource by taping off shapes, rolling on latex house paint, and applying a faux finish. Prices are determined by estimates for residential faux finishing services. The faux plywood teeters between futility and beauty.

LCD monitors, live security cameras, mirrored acrylic sheets, television monitors, and blue porch lights are embedded in the forms. These simple mechanisms create an artificial mystery, and tip them into the absurd. The wonder of the universe and Man’s conquest within it are equally mocked and praised.