This work is part of the interactive "Puddle" installation, which is a commentary on the current U.S energy policy.
Matt Kenyon, a founding member of the artist collaborative called SWAMP (Studies of Work Atmospheres and Mass Production), which explores the interfaces between organic and artifical life, will speak April 28 at The University of Akron’s Myers School of Art.
Free and open to the public, the event begins at 6 p.m. in Folk Hall Auditorium, 150 E. Exchange St. It is part of UA’s Synapse [art+science] series that aims to foster insights and interactions among scientists and artists. This lecture is co-sponsored by UA's Myers School of Art and Department of Polymer Science in conjunction with the National Science Foundation.
SWAMP is the collaborative effort of artists Douglas Easterly of Victoria University of Wellington in New Zealand and Kenyon, of Penn State University. Their work focuses on the effects of global corporate operations, mass media and the military-industrial complex on organic and artificial life. SWAMP has been making work in this vein since 1999 using a wide range of media, including custom software, electronics, mechanical devices and even living organisms.
For example, SWAMP's "Puddle" is an interactive installation that uses a motor oil-like material called ferrofluid to display text on the surface of what appears to be everyday automobile oil. "Puddle" comments on U.S. energy policy by displaying the names of sports utility vehicles — such as Suburban and Expedition — on the surface of the oil.
For more information, call the UA Myers School of Art at 330-972-6030 or visit SWAMP or Myers School of Art.
Media contact: Cyndee Snider, 330-972-5196 or cyndee@.uakron.edu.