01NY

06WA

this project began as an exercise in the scientific method, complete with data collection, laboratory protocol and the careful documentation of all observed phenomena. my working hypothesis was: the quantification and extrapolation of identity is possible through the physical object of a person's underwear. i collected over 70 pairs of worn underwear from friends and family. i never believed the hypothesis was sound, but i did believe that i could engage as an artist in the process of evaluation and description without interjecting myself into the work. the project failed, or should i say, ceased to be objective, because of this false logic.

the CD ROM/installation magical thinking is the result of admitting my personal investment in the project. while it functions as a catalogue of my underwear collection, it also serves as a means for viewer/participants to retrace the connections i made with the people who contributed to my project. iI hope that the installation becomes a vehicle for the relationship between myself and my audience and describes new ways of navigating the fetish of collecting.

both: embroidery on silkscreen, over digital print. 2001.