This was for my Year 2 school project, but I was mostly being experimental and just having fun. The idea was to create an "artifact" made of several "ingredients".
I decided to take on the perspective of a crazed modern alchemist bent on "playing God" by changing genetics and creating chimeras to eliminate natural "defects". I created and collected several objects and displayed them in a custom wooden shelf, which was displayed next to a framed papercraft artwork.
Some random objects I collected and created for the shelf. The quote in the bottle reads "Quod natura ficit, Ars perficit", which translates to "Where Nature is imperfect, Art perfects".
I had fun growing crystals such as this Copper (II) Sulphate in a petri dish.
One of the objects I had collected from my childhood and placed in the shelf. I believe this was from the carapace of a soft-shell turtle.
I had fun with my very first "taxidermy" project. I removed the flesh from a chicken head and preserved the skull. The entire process was a memorable experience and it certainly made me feel like I was really the crazed Alchemist.
A mini papercraft artwork inside a small belljar. The tables have turned and the (genetically-modified mutant) prey is hunting the predator. This was my take on the dangers of playing with nature.
Toy plastic models of a tiger and a dilophosaurus half-painted to resemble small anatomical models.
The resurrected pegasus: A recurring motif in this work. The pegasus, a mythical creature representing status and spiritual energy, is realised. However, it is neither dead nor alive; it is conscious and active, but it is not organic and does not breathe. I have always been interested in our relationship with death and life and our perceptions of them.
A framed papercraft of the resurrected pegasus placed next to the Alchemist's shelf.
I created an illustrated book explaining the Alchemist's motivation and goals.
