ART

Bots / 2022 / velvet, polyfil

Exhibited in Fraser Valley Biennial 2023, The Reach Gallery Museum Abbotsford.

Bots is a large pile of 10 life-size featureless red velvet ragdolls inspired by crowd conflict simulation software and body pillows. The title refers to social bots which are sophisticated internet applications that run automated tasks that mimic human behavior like chatting, posting, and myriad other ways to manipulate information online. Ten of these bots are in a dogpile, both a physical act and a social media phenomenon where a crowd focuses derision at a single person. This often involves deploying hoards of bots that artificially inflate the level of interest in the event. My figures embody this distorting effect of social media in its soft smooth surface that is inviting, stimulating, and comforting yet superficially connects us to others that could be lifeless silicon-based programs. In the context of my art practice, this work is a formal departure from the hard materials and industrial methods of my prior work, while also expanding my use of figuration and group sculpture to examine contemporary social relationships involving crowds both human and artificial.