make-me-change-me — Jeremiah Barber

JEREMIAH BARBER

Make Me Change Me
Single or two channel HD Video (color, sound)
TRT 17’42” (single)
Featuring Florentina Mocanu-Schendel, Dean Hernandez, Ingrid Rojas Contreras and Jeremiah Barber

Make Me Change Me
Recology AIR Program
San Francisco CA
2016

The video excerpt above is the culmination of a four-month residency at San Francisco’s Recology. The Recology program awards Bay Area artists exclusive access to the “Public Reuse and Recycling Area”, known affectionately as the Dump, where materials can be gathered and taken back to the studio for a four-month period, followed by an exhibition. In addition to the fantastical materials that felt necessary for me to use (a dozen bags of a bizarre bright red organic powder, a human-size display case, sunglass lens samples, mirrors and lights of all kinds), while trash-collecting I was particularly drawn toward small handwritten notes. What becomes of our passing thoughts scribbled on napkins and hotel notepads?

For this series I paired compelling found-texts with performers and outfits or scenarios made from reused materials. I also built a series of film equipment from trash, which would influence my later sculptural practice. Trash-based film equipment included custom lights, a skateboard wheel-dolly, and a floating tripod (pictured above).

While in residency I also created an interactive sculpture called Skyloop. Approaching this work the viewer finds themselves reflected and projected in layers of altered and mirrored images of themselves in a playful kaleidoscope.

Above:
Stills from Make Me Change Me

Floating Tripod
Found styrofoam, plastic, ratchet strap, milk crate, laptop stand, and spring clamps

Skyloop
Skylight, plexiglas, sunglasses, camera and projector
60"x28"x14"

Special thanks to the incredible team at Recology: Deborah Munk, Sharon Spain, Micah Gibson, and Felisia Castaneda.