gardening in a galaxy far far away (2016)

4 aluminium prints of a techno-biotic world 

gardening in a galaxy far, far away 

Medium:

vacuum sealed bags, green zucchini, red tulips, yellow vinyl text

'Space is Ours!', said the lab coat of a Russian medical student after Gagarin's flight in 1961. 

The zucchini and the tulip were one of the first plants to be gardened in outer space, most famously documented by the NASA astronaut, Don Petit in his (ridiculous) blog, Diary of a Space Zucchini. 

The feat is at once unique and a repetition of a long history of colonisation. The image of the plants, vacuum packed in a void and hanging on a bare wall has obvious gender connotations in terms of space travel and the selective discrimination of those that might cross frontiers. They are simultaneously a testament to the continuation of the Cold War, an acknowledgement of imminent extinction here and a test of exotic (non-native) species in alien territory. 

In the wake of a refugee crisis around the world, the yellow line in vinyl is meant to inspire associations with an immigration line at an airport, border security tapes, 'Do Not Cross / Police Line' and 'Caution'. Yet, it's poetics might lean toward the wonder of the stars, the mystery of what lies beyond and the desire and empathy for someone else across a border. 

Other information: http://thenewinquiry.com/essays/manifesto-of-the-committee-to-abolish-outer-space/