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Ye Ol’ Factory Station (Homage to Sir Joseph Paxton), 2024

8 x 2.5 x 2 feet

Mixed Media: wood, wire, ribbons, puffballs, pins, upcycled clothing, dried herbs, essential oils

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Power Up Instructions, 2024

12 X 12 X 6 inches

Wood frame, written Fluxus prompt, acrylic paint, enamel paint, gold broach, foam mushroom

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Ye Ol' Factory Station (Homage to Sir Joseph Paxton) was created for the exhibition The Arcade of Hypermodernity. It serves as a celebration of human technology, purposely existing in the show as an unplugged homage to the arcades, pageantry, and festivities of a bygone era. Sir Joseph Paxton was the gardener turned architect of The Crystal Palace of London's Great Exhibition of 1851, a pivotal moment in the architectural history of arcades.

 

The base of the work is a giant nose, adored with ribbons and plant materials. Each colored puffball on the artwork has a unique scent, inviting visitors to smell each one (although the air is definitely filled with its aroma upon approach). The show is a multisensory experience and this artwork helps set the tone. It also references the idea of synesthesia (a sensory crossover where sense from one part of the body trigger another) with vibrant colors as an interpretation of smell. The amanita mushroom is both a reference to psychedelics, which can cause temporary synesthesia and are part of the philosophical discourse of hypermodernity, and in particular to one of the most recognizable video games ever made: Super Mario Bros.

 

The finishing touch is a poetic prompt on the wall in the style of the Fluxus movement, inviting visitors into a conceptual realm.

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