Frogs, Bugs and Ethics

Brandon is probably one of the most "science-y" artists on this inter-disciplinary residency.  As a widely-exhibited, multi-disciplinary artist and an amphibian biologist specializing in limb development, he traverses both the world of science and art with ease.  In fact, he’s also doing a trans-disciplinary PhD which gives him the flexibility to focus on both his loves – frogs and aesthetics.

(Wait a minute, I just used the words inter-disciplinary, multi-disciplinary and trans-disciplinary in the same paragraph - the lines between ecology and art really are beginning to blur at this point!) But as Brandon sees it, why should the lines between disciplines be drawn at all? What we really should be doing is “connecting the dots.”

Brandon’s “bio-art” practice helps him to engage in what he calls a type of “ecosystem activism.” This is essentially raising community awareness of the environment, through physical field trips, art gallery installations and public art interventions.  All of this amounts to “tactile and experiential learning”; tools that he believes to be far more valuable and accessible than traditional methods of knowledge acquisition.

But his work is more than just didactic messages.  “Art can’t be art unless it’s somehow open-ended.  Otherwise it’s just propaganda or illustration,” he tells us.  And it is this room for doubt that has fuelled his drive, and his extensive research, over the years.   Involving two unpredictable variables – ecosystems and the public – Brandon embraces the potential chaos factor (much like the Fluxus artists did) in both his methodologies and his outcomes.  This is all part-and-parcel of what happens when you work with living systems.

Also extremely important to Brandon is the issue of sustainability and the after-life of his artworks.  This is one of the ways in which this type of work differs to that of other artists – it raises the question of ethics in art.

When your artwork involves creating micro-habitats, what happens to the work after the exhibition/project is over?

Aware of this issue, KHOJ has been involved with negotiating potential sites for some of the transportable artworks in this residency (including Pratik’s “FORGIVE” installation and Brandon’s “Love Motel” public art intervention at Select City Walk shopping mall) so that they may be ‘housed’ for some time after the residency ends if possible.

During his time at KHOJ, Brandon is creating two site-specific installations – one as mentioned above in the mall, and the other in the studio.  Both intend to attract a number of insects with a variety of fruit, UV light and native plants.  As part of this Brandon is keeping a “bug-blog” to keep track of all the creatures that he is able document in his time in India.

But in the meantime a gecko has infiltrated the camp and seems to be quite enjoying the easy access to the plethora of insects in Brandon’s KHOJ studio...Unpredictability prevails!