Sometimes I have an idea. And then, sometimes, an idea has me: This is the way it is with Dark Matter. While sketching potential projects, I’d made an isometric line drawing of a normal rectangular cabinet. I quickly became fixated on the idea of a cabinet that always looks like you’re viewing it from an angle, where you’re never quite sure of what you’re seeing.
The title “Dark Matter” has a double meaning. It references a science fiction novel about a box that exists in quantum superposition (I imagine such an object would look something like this); it’s also a comment on being indigenous and white-passing — a different sort of superposition.
While this cabinet will function as an altar to my grandmother (a full blood Grand River Ottawa Indian), it’s also my first experiment in a burgeoning exploration of strangely extruded forms. The construction challenges were by turns vexing and playful, and I look forward to revisiting it again in the future. For now, however, it’s given me a renewed appreciation for the simple rectangle.
