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(Color pencil on paper)

(More will be added soon)

The study of human anatomy is the perfect merge between art and science. Many of these studies not only aimed to understand the workings of the body, but also originated from a fear of mortality. It was believed that artists had the ability to reanimate the dead through images. For example during the Renaissance era artists would often depict animated cadavers strolling through landscapes. Anatomy books dissect the human body in sensuous detail, making organs and flesh into visual fetish. Body parts are always displayed in isolation against a stark white background, further emphasizing every curve and crevice.

Anatomy illustrations began to take on a moralistic tone during the Renaissance and this theme continued into the 19th century. Many of the cadavers in anatomy books engage in actions that illustrate the moralistic implications of being dead and dissected. In many ways, the cadavers became the living personification of our fate after death.

Western medicine’s exploration of the body through anatomy ultimately reflects cultural attitudes regarding gender and mortality. These gendered power dynamics can be seen in the “objective” scientific gaze of the examiner and the examined body. I always found it fascinating how even after such violent violations of the body the figures in these illustrations are still able to maintain expressions of ecstasy, even one of sexual pleasure. Many of these drawings inspired my upcoming animation film “The Necrophiliacs”; which further explores this eroticization of the violated body and the gender dynamics in Western medicine.

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Charcoal and watercolor on paper

I have always been fascinated by the military and the idea of playing soldier. For me, the army offers a possibility for transformation and a sense of rebirth. In my view, soldiering is not as much about killing as it is a violent process of separating the ego from the self. When people think of the military, they tend to immediately respond to the war or the atrocities perpetrated by the government. However, I am interested in what some soldiers describe as "ambivalent realities". As repulsed and horrified as I am with war, I still find a fascination with combat. I am especially attracted to what some soldiers describe as a heightened state of awareness induced by combat that is almost akin to a trip on drugs. It is this addictive fascination combined with complete revulsion that draws me to the army.

Oliver Stone's "Platoon" was probably the first source that triggered my curiosity. What interested me was not the John Wayne myth of "courage" and "heroism" that are shown during combat situations. I was drawn to the myth that one can discover oneself through the horrors of war. The main character Chris Taylor came from a middle class family and dropped out of college to join the army. He wanted to be anonymous and start all over again in the military. The myth of self discovery perpetuated by Taylor stayed with me for a long time.

These drawings/sketches are immediate and spontaneous responses to my ideas of soldiering. I began developing these baby like characters that literally engage in an internalization of camouflage. Camouflage exits the body through orifices and as different bodily fluids. While the actions are violent, the violence is turned inwards intead of outwards; almost participating in acts of self mutilation.

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Gouache and pen on paper

In this developing series I began creating these monster like creatures that spit out camouflage as blood or other bodily fluids. The military symbolized by camouflage is a system that the body internalizes.

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Gouache on paper

A lot of my inspiration comes from reading Vietnam literature written by veteran soldiers and watching war movies from that era. In this developing series, I want to explore camouflage's symbolic associations and effects on the body. Recently, images of ghosts, exorcism, and shamanism began to appear in my work. It all relates to my continuing investigation into the ritualistic and dramatic nature of war and soldiering. Ultimately, camouflage is a skin or costume that is slipped into; a layer of protective covering that becomes part of the body.