Christine Chin uses cyanotype prints, fiber sculpture and animation to document invasive species in the Finger Lakes, including the Tree of Heaven and the Spotted Lanternfly, and the last four years of North Atlantic Tropical Storms.
"Heaven" refers to the Tree of Heaven (Ailanthus altissima), an invasive species from Asia that is the host species of the Spotted Lanternfly (Lycorma delicatula). The Tree of Heaven is widespread in the US after its introduction as a horticultural species from China in the 1700s, and the large scale cyanotypes in the exhibition are made from specimens identified by PRISM invasive species mapping in Geneva, NY. The spotted lanternfly is not yet widespread in Central and Northern New York. Animation and cyanotypes of the lanternfly in the exhibition are created from original video footage and specimens obtained at a site along the Susquehanna river only an hour south of Ithaca.
The "Hurricanes" in the exhibition are the artist's "Stuffed Storms," which are created from NOAA satellite imagery of hurricanes printed onto fabric, either with archival inkjet or cyanotype chemistry, and formed into pillow-like sewn objects that are machine quilted and hand-embroidered. The storms document every storm in the Atlantic Storm Season that runs from August-November in the Western Hemisphere. Four seasons of storms are on view, from 2020 to 2023.
The exhibition is on view from October 5-29, 2023 at State of the Art Gallery in Ithaca, NY.
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