I investigate the relationship we have with modern industry concerning the physical labor demanded of workers, and how the nature of this relationship proposes the importance of self-protection. I explore conversations occurring between these laborers’ bodies and their work sites through the use of heavy materials and weight-bearing, hazard-resistant equipment that are manipulated to give a nod to the figure. At times my work presents literal material translations, such as unaltered lift straps, cinder blocks, and other devices. These work in conjunction with manipulated materials, such as latex, concrete, and PPE, to create scenes in which the body enters into conversation with its hazardous environment. Concurrently, I bring attention to the safety measures required to subsist in these environments, exposing the body’s limitations by presenting these materials in subdued ways.  

Though we all have a relationship with industry through everyday commodities , typically only blue-collar workers engage with such spaces, working to maintain their function. Acknowledging this, I act to bring attention to this area of the workforce. Being inspired by my father’s work as a pipefitter and my work in foundries and factories, I examine the way we conduct ourselves in such spaces—how they necessitate us to assume a position of physical strength and resilience while within them, two qualities that are held in the machines and rigorous processes occurring within industrial sites themselves. Manipulating materials coded to these environments offers a reflection of our physicality—unavoidably malleable and subject to injury. Presenting these materials in a way that alludes to the figure acts to force what is industrial to fit inside our bodies’ vulnerable position. I question how we counterbalance these spaces with being at-risk while occupying them; I question how these spaces can reflect this position back to us. The scale of my work often creates a confrontation between itself and the viewer; I ask onlookers to consider how they see themselves in the work, and how the work may see itself in them.