This piece is part of a series called Between Soil and Sky--based on walks through Port Townsend, exploring the architectural relationships, fragility, and more-than-human influence.
I became somewhat fixated on the fences and gates that edged the many houses in Port Townsend and the borders that were created between public/private space, animal/human space, owner/guest space, housed/houseless, etc. I marveled at the world-building that was unfolding in several of the yards and wondered, why do we have to build so many little worlds when we all live in the same one? Suddenly, it seemed as if the pandemic isolation wasn’t such a far leap for those who had the luxury of yards and fences. The pandemic solidified those barriers in a way that disturbed and gnawed at me while I took comfort in my own home and yard.
I became somewhat fixated on the fences and gates that edged the many houses in Port Townsend and the borders that were created between public/private space, animal/human space, owner/guest space, housed/houseless, etc. I marveled at the world-building that was unfolding in several of the yards and wondered, why do we have to build so many little worlds when we all live in the same one? Suddenly, it seemed as if the pandemic isolation wasn’t such a far leap for those who had the luxury of yards and fences. The pandemic solidified those barriers in a way that disturbed and gnawed at me while I took comfort in my own home and yard.
- Collections: Recent Paintings & Layered Works