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Grafted Settings, 2015
Nickel plated flatware
Tree: 87 in h x 42 in w x 43 in d
Sapling: 47 in h x 31 in w x 21 in d
Installation at Mark Moore Gallery, LA, Jean Shin: Domesticated Landscapes
Grafted Settings investigates the history and cultural connotations of flatware, domesticated spaces, and their consequences on nature. The practical, utilitarian function of the utensil serves as a cross-cultural common ground facilitating the basic human need for sustenance and nourishment. Yet historically, flatware has become loaded with divisive cultural significance, evoking associations embedded with class, etiquette, privilege, and global trade. This complexity is similarly evident in the artist’s use of the tree as an object representing both utility and idealized beauty. Together, the tree and flatware suggest a harmonious coexistence of culture and nature in maintaining a home, while softly referencing their mutual fragility. The imagery of the decorative, cultivated tree refers to the pristine suburban landscape: a source of pleasure and reassurance, but in reality also of anxiety and unsustainability, reminding us of our fragile existence in the face of pressing ecological issues, economic and domestic challenges.