Palmyra

Human Rights Series, Cast objects in Jesmonite, plaster, vermiculite & Jesmonite pigment, Installation, variable dimensions, Artist’s Collection

Palmyra was inspired by the destruction of the ancient Syrian site of Palmyra by ISIS. Modern materials were used to create crumbling archaeological artifacts, and the lone pillar is symbolic of the devastation. The objects buried within the blocks and pillar (bones, weapons, sex toys) metaphorically represent different aspects of war atrocities as defined by the United Nations and the British House of Lords. There is an important contextual relationship between the objects. For example, sex toys seen together with weapons represent sexual violence—often used as a weapon in war.

Modern objects rendered like archaeological relics.