Jess Slipp

Rocks are a form and means to compact earth and time. I am interested in what rocks contain and how, when deconstructed, they return to tiny particles of matter – the fundamental component to the fabric of the universe and where all of life began. with & of (Becoming Rock) is an extensive series of performative videos which explore the relationship between body and earth.  

However, I see each repeated attempt as an absurd yet genuine, awkward yet honest, gesture toward the reimagining of matter and what matters in this time of ecological crisis and global climate change. The videos document forty distinct attempts to embody or merge with the land through the action of becoming rock, visually, in the landscape. The accompanying paper sculptures — used as performance objects in the videos — carry the folds, tears, and traces of their lifetime, akin to a rock, the land, or even flesh. The act of repetition echoing throughout this body of work has become a ritual or meditation within my creative practice; a way to learn about and understand the earth via my body, over and over again. To actually merge with the land is, of course, a physical impossibility. However, I see each repeated attempt as an absurd yet genuine, awkward yet honest, gesture toward the reimagining of matter and what matters in this time of ecological crisis and global climate change.