“WATER MOCCASIN SKIN” 2010 MELANIE JAMISON
For the School of Latitudes program at Houston-based non-profit space labotanica, the artists in residence were asked to write a personal manifesto for growth. During this assignment, I came across a run-over water moccasin which was almost perfectly intact. As an avid consumer, I had found a pivotal opportunity to reverse destructive practices. I would render my personal manifesto through a confrontational unknown - I decided to skin the snake. I endured the first gruesome night piercing through the pungent odor of muddy fish, cutting through tough, fibrous spine, careful to avoid the still venomous glands and fangs. Once the skin was detached from the snake, I disposed of the carcass. The skin was left to freeze in a plastic bag over the course of the next few days. It was then stored in a container for three weeks, cured in a solution of glycerin soap and rubbing alcohol. Afterwards, the remaining flesh and bone was trimmed. The skin was pinned to a board, coated with vegetable oil and left to dry. Further concepts branched from this project, such as wearable pieces for performance art or series of objects made from manipulated roadkill skins. However, the water moccasin skin decidedly sits as a raw material in its completed stage, unadorned, as an emblem of experience.
“WATER MOCCASIN SKIN” 2010 MELANIE JAMISON
For the School of Latitudes program at Houston-based non-profit space labotanica, the artists in residence were asked to write a personal manifesto for growth. During this assignment, I came across a run-over water moccasin which was almost perfectly intact. As an avid consumer, I had found a pivotal opportunity to reverse destructive practices. I would render my personal manifesto through a confrontational unknown - I decided to skin the snake. I endured the first gruesome night piercing through the pungent odor of muddy fish, cutting through tough, fibrous spine, careful to avoid the still venomous glands and fangs. Once the skin was detached from the snake, I disposed of the carcass. The skin was left to freeze in a plastic bag over the course of the next few days. It was then stored in a container for three weeks, cured in a solution of glycerin soap and rubbing alcohol. Afterwards, the remaining flesh and bone was trimmed. The skin was pinned to a board, coated with vegetable oil and left to dry. Further concepts branched from this project, such as wearable pieces for performance art or series of objects made from manipulated roadkill skins. However, the water moccasin skin decidedly sits as a raw material in its completed stage, unadorned, as an emblem of experience.