Wounded Maps, 65” x 103” surface joined by twelve 17” x 35” cheesecloth panels, 2011 

By tracing shadows, rubbing tombstones and historical markings, combining plants, dirt, and bird drops, rolling over by car wheels, and printing over with debris, I intend to record elements that, on the one hand, are predictable and, on the other hand, refer to my own subconsciously connected vocabulary, accessed by reacting to the realms of the human condition, such as touch, alienation, displacement, violence, figuration, and disappearance.  Wounded Map also bears witness to my own epiphany: forgiving Imperial Japan for the atrocities it brought to the Chinese people. The wounded map was created at the same time, and so coexists with the death of two talented photojournalists in Libya and the devastation from the tornado that set down in Birmingham, Alabama, in April 2011. 

*78 million dollars of cash were recovered from wallets and safes and turned over to authorities following Japan’s March earthquake and tsunami (Time Magazine). You have to respect a nation like this.