The Emperor Decomposing

This work plays with ideas of decomposition, face change and biological decay. Stone has been used throughout human history as a vehicle for the projection of power into the world, whether in buildings designed to project permanence, stability or splendour, or in the art and iconography present in almost every human culture or tradition. The irony of this association with power and permanence should not be lost on us, As stone, particularly sedimentary stone, is the product of decay. Those of us who work with this medium, are never in any doubt that these materials are the result of carbon based life’s decay and decomposition. We are also aware when working on old buildings and structures that biological actions are ceaseless in their actions. This Emperor’s image has been subject to the vicissitudes that chemical or physical erosion can bring about. The edition of the fungus, ‘The Earths Great Decomposers’ is a further play on the ideas of impermanence and change which will effect even the most powerful. He has been made from Limestone found on Ireland’s western shores, showing a matrix of erosion which closely resembles the cellular structures of biological life.