LIFE GOES ON, UNTIL IT DOESN'T
This project deals with the North American funeral ritual. I examined the ways in which the dead are treated both in current North American society and in other cultures, the underlying concepts behind these ways of doing things, and whether these practices truly serve the best interests both of the dead and of the living. Through my work I have sought to create value and memory through the use of symbolic content drawn from a number of traditions, as well as to promote healing through the thoughtful use of ritual.
MEMENTO COFFIN
I want to put a coffin in your living room. As a culture we have pushed the idea of death to the fringes of our society; out of sight, out of mind. This table/coffin seeks to dissolve this illusion, while fostering an understanding of the most fundamental truth. The coffin is made of pine and treated with a soap finish. The open bottom and sides, which symbolize the decay of physical matter, allows for quicker inegration of the body into the soil. The body is placed in a fetal position, which allows for the dead to be buried facing the east, toward the sun, a common symbol of rebirth.
FONTIS URN
"Any animal that has an annual cycle, for instance the peacock losing it;s tailfeathers, becomes symbolic of the process that moves the seasons...The deer sheds it's antlers and the antlers grow again. Any animal that has this kind of cycle becomes associated with the cosmic cycle, and the deer becomes a very important symbolic animal."
- Joseph Campbell
The Fontis urn reinforces the idea of the cosmic cycle. It is a scattering urn, and is meant to be kept as a personal memorial. It is slip cast in porcelin, and can be used as a watering pitcher and foster growth, both physically and spiritually.
SERO URN
The Sero urn is an abstraction of the sprouting seed. This object allows for individuals to say goodbye in their own way, on their own terms, in their own time. Inside the urn there is a small container for the ashes, and when one is ready to let go, it can be buried in the ground, with the main container serving as a device to dig the hole. After burial Sero severs as a personal memorial to the dead, and as a reminder of the great cycle of life.
NAVIS URN
In an age of industrialized death care, this object mirrors the very viceral experience of cremation. The urn body is made of balsa wood, while the lid is composed of compressed charcoal. The urn is meant to be burned, whether in a body of water or in place. This manufactured ritual represents the trancedence of the physical world through the destruction of the temporal form.
GENESIS STONES
Nature has been pushed out of our cemeteries. Influenced by the Jewish tradition of placing stones on graves, the Genesis stones bring life to a place of death. The “stones” are made up of a mixture of earth and flower seed bound in a
water soluble gum arabic matrix. The design is based on areas of the body where the soul has been thought to dwell. By placing the stone at a loved one's site, we are saying " I was here". Upon returning to the site, life would have sprouted from the stone, seemingly answering, " I know".
TUMULUS GRAVE MARKER
In conjunction with the Genesis stones, Tumulus can transform a landscape to create a living natural grave site. Tumulus is made of solid oak, so it too can degrade in time. The stones are to be placed in the offering tray, and over time life wil over take the grave. The cirlcular disk is a ceramic magnet which can be detected for up to 1000 years. Embedded in the magnet is an RFID tag, which can be detected for 500 years.
