Recently, I stumbled upon a television program that attempted to explain different methods by which the Shroud of Turin could have been created. One method included wrapping a live person in cloth and allowing them to sweat on the fabric. The fabric is then baked, which causes the sweat-covered areas to darken. I want to use this method of creating in order to create multiple death shrouds for myself. I'm interested in this process, both because of my interest in resisting death rituals, as well as raising questions of the status of the 'original.'
As far as location, I know I want to display the three shrouds in a disused area, such as an abandoned house or barn. I think this kind of location and its lack of functionality will rhyme well with the non-functional aspects of the three shrouds. I'm interested in the idea of using a thrown off space, and filling it with my own thrown off death shrouds. As the piece grows and changes over the semester the abandoned building could become a site for the enactment of other rituals, becoming a ritualized center, in constant dialogue with the events happening within it.
If you would like to hear a sample of the artist describing his work, please click here.