Alicia Escott

Another Form of Reproduction

2019

Medium: Found artificial butterfly wing, found discarded printers, digital c print

Dimensions: 29" x 18" x 18"

Price: Upon request

Description: One of the things that I think separates our species is that we are image makers. As, myself, an image maker, I spend a lot of time thinking about this phenomena and its impacts. In my lifetime while species have declined, the number of images of these animals have exponentially expanded. We are images makers. And we believe the images we make In a time of species loss on par with other great extinction events, our species continues to thrive. I believe in my gut that our ability to make and reproduce Images is collectively used as a tool to self sooth what it is to live through mass extinction. I conceived the first layer of these works when I was doing work around the xercies blue butterfly (The first documented butterfly extinction in North America, that occurred in the land that we now call the outer sunset in San Francisco where my studio is.) I saw the butterfly wing on the ground by my studio and for a few precious moments thought it was real. I cannot remember if I was relieved or upset to realize it was synthetic— both simultaneously— I imagine. This exact same thing happened to me again later when I was at recology, again working with butterflies. Then again in preparation for this show. That I should mistake this fake butterfly for a real one, and then be able to photograph it and make prints of it, to share it in pixels widely online, which you can screenshot and create your own copy of— this newer form of reproduction is a way we cope with the crushing reality of the death all around us.