David W. Van Ness
David W. Van Ness - Stacking Cows
Artist Statement
Soon, organisms will be another medium for artists to manipulate like clay. There will be no structure to limit them from doing so. It will only be the skill of the artist that might eventually determine a species rather than the genetics of the species. What looks like a cat may have actually begun life as a cow or dog. Man made creatures will walk among those created by mother nature. Cubist cows and abstract rats will flourish in our city streets, be traded on eBay, and live amongst us as pets. This will be accomplished by breaking down the DNA on the molecular level allowing for free manipulation to occur by outside forces until they are set by the designer. Once done however, they’ll be able to be changed as many times as the designer wishes. Life will truly be customizable. Man will have ultimate control over nature, redesigning it to his will. Man will be able to make the natural world his own, work around his ideas and not that of eons of evolution. Man will in essence become nature and force an evolution upon the rest of the world. Genetics will be broken down to ooze that which can be shaped and modeled at will. Machines will become organic, organic will become mechanical. What becomes of a world created by our own creations, and how does this world react in contrast to the original world?
I create within my work a sense of this possibility. I look to automotive, furniture, and industrial design for the clues to what this world may look like. My work is a mix of both science fiction and modern sculptural practices. Though based on science fiction and surrealism in concept, I am interested in materialism and sleek abstract design in the physical manifestation of the work. Much of my work comes from dreams, but is edited in the building process.
Soon, organisms will be another medium for artists to manipulate like clay. There will be no structure to limit them from doing so. It will only be the skill of the artist that might eventually determine a species rather than the genetics of the species. What looks like a cat may have actually begun life as a cow or dog. Man made creatures will walk among those created by mother nature. Cubist cows and abstract rats will flourish in our city streets, be traded on eBay, and live amongst us as pets. This will be accomplished by breaking down the DNA on the molecular level allowing for free manipulation to occur by outside forces until they are set by the designer. Once done however, they’ll be able to be changed as many times as the designer wishes. Life will truly be customizable. Man will have ultimate control over nature, redesigning it to his will. Man will be able to make the natural world his own, work around his ideas and not that of eons of evolution. Man will in essence become nature and force an evolution upon the rest of the world. Genetics will be broken down to ooze that which can be shaped and modeled at will. Machines will become organic, organic will become mechanical. What becomes of a world created by our own creations, and how does this world react in contrast to the original world?
I create within my work a sense of this possibility. I look to automotive, furniture, and industrial design for the clues to what this world may look like. My work is a mix of both science fiction and modern sculptural practices. Though based on science fiction and surrealism in concept, I am interested in materialism and sleek abstract design in the physical manifestation of the work. Much of my work comes from dreams, but is edited in the building process.
