Rico Gatson and Ellie Murphy, Pac Man at ACP, 2009, Beads, nylon, wood, hardware, Gaffers tape, paper, paint, pencil, glitter and images, 5 curtains, each 30 x 80" (Installation dimensions variable)Rico Gatson and Ellie Murphy"Pac Man" at ACP (Artist Curated Projects), Los Angeles2009Beads, nylon, wood, hardware, Gaffers tape, paper, paint, pencil, glitter and images5 beaded curtains, each 30 x 80 inches(Installation dimensions variable)We began to consider the gallery’s architecture as a starting point. Right away, Ellie wanted to elaborate on the arched doorways. The designs for her beaded curtains developed from the form of the arch and thinking of it as a coffin, a setting sun, a ghost, a church window, and moved conceptually from there. Rico wanted to work on the walls to create a collage and drawing that responds immediately to the environment. He made elements in his studio to bring to Los Angeles so he could assemble them all spontaneously into the finished piece on site.“Pac Man” became a metaphor for the back and forth dialog involved in creating the show, and then began to resonate with the current turn in the economy from consumption to conservation. We were inspired by ACP’s intimate, social and experimental venue, and found this to be a singular opportunity to respond to the larger political environment in a really personal way.

Rico Gatson and Ellie Murphy, Pac Man at ACP, 2009, Beads, nylon, wood, hardware, Gaffers tape, paper, paint, pencil, glitter and images, 5 curtains, each 30 x 80" (Installation detail)Rico Gatson and Ellie Murphy"Pac Man" at ACP (Artist Curated Projects), Los Angeles2009Beads, nylon, wood, hardware, Gaffers tape, paper, paint, pencil, glitter and images5 beaded curtains, each 30 x 80 inches(Installation dimensions variable)We began to consider the gallery’s architecture as a starting point. Right away, Ellie wanted to elaborate on the arched doorways. The designs for her beaded curtains developed from the form of the arch and thinking of it as a coffin, a setting sun, a ghost, a church window, and moved conceptually from there. Rico wanted to work on the walls to create a collage and drawing that responds immediately to the environment. He made elements in his studio to bring to Los Angeles so he could assemble them all spontaneously into the finished piece on site.“Pac Man” became a metaphor for the back and forth dialog involved in creating the show, and then began to resonate with the current turn in the economy from consumption to conservation. We were inspired by ACP’s intimate, social and experimental venue, and found this to be a singular opportunity to respond to the larger political environment in a really personal way.

Rico Gatson and Ellie Murphy, Pac Man at ACP, 2009, Beads, nylon, wood, hardware, Gaffers tape, paper, paint, pencil, glitter and images, 5 curtains, each 30 x 80" (Installation dimensions variable)Rico Gatson and Ellie Murphy"Pac Man" at ACP (Artist Curated Projects), Los Angeles2009Beads, nylon, wood, hardware, Gaffers tape, paper, paint, pencil, glitter and images5 beaded curtains, each 30 x 80 inches(Installation dimensions variable)We began to consider the gallery’s architecture as a starting point. Right away, Ellie wanted to elaborate on the arched doorways. The designs for her beaded curtains developed from the form of the arch and thinking of it as a coffin, a setting sun, a ghost, a church window, and moved conceptually from there. Rico wanted to work on the walls to create a collage and drawing that responds immediately to the environment. He made elements in his studio to bring to Los Angeles so he could assemble them all spontaneously into the finished piece on site.“Pac Man” became a metaphor for the back and forth dialog involved in creating the show, and then began to resonate with the current turn in the economy from consumption to conservation. We were inspired by ACP’s intimate, social and experimental venue, and found this to be a singular opportunity to respond to the larger political environment in a really personal way.

"Pac Man," 2009, Digital drawing, 17 x 11""Pac Man" 2009Digital drawing, 17 x 11"

Untitled (The Big "U"), 2009, Plastic beads, nylon, metal and wood, 6' x 8'Untitled (The Big "U")2009Plastic beads, nylon, metal and wood6' x 8'

Untitled (The Big "U"), 2009 Plastic beads, nylon, metal and wood, 6' x 8' (Detail)Untitled (The Big "U")2009Plastic beads, nylon, metal and wood6' x 8' (Detail)

Untitled (Varsity), 2008, 10 Acrylic yarn tassels, 12" x 72" each (Installation)Untitled (Varsity)200810 Acrylic yarn tassels12" x 72" each (Installation)

Untitled (Beaded Hairstyles 1), 2009, Digital drawing ink jet, 11 x 17"Untitled (Beaded Hairstyles 1)2009Digital drawing ink jet11 x 17"

Untitled (Beaded Hairstyles 2), 2009, Digital drawing ink jet, 11 x 17"Untitled (Beaded Hairstyles 2)2009Digital drawing ink jet11 x 17"

SQUASHblossom, 2007, Acrylic yarn, beads, tin foil, 5 x 6 x 7' (Installation)SQUASHblossom2007Acrylic yarn, beads, tin foil5 x 6 x 7 feet (Installation)

SQUASHblossom, 2007, Acrylic yarn, beads, tin foil, 5 x 6 x 7 feet (Detail)SQUASHblossom2007Acrylic yarn, beads, tin foil5 x 6 x 7 feet (Detail)

Strand organized by Rico Gatson and Ellie Murphy, 2007, Installation at NYCAMS, New York CityStrand organized by Rico Gatson and Ellie Murphy2007Installation at NYCAMS, New York CityStrand is a show of artists who work in a similar vein. A shared affinity for the hard within the soft and the potency of material is explored. There is a poetic strength to the work which refers to both the physical environment and to a broader sense of social connectivity. The fact that all the work is in some way contingent upon its environment speaks to a desire not simply to transcend a mutual dependency, but to embrace it. Pieces hang from the ceiling, are embedded in the wall, piled upon the floor, wrapped around structure, or woven into armature. Strand, in this fashion, transcends the simple meaning of fiber, thread or linear form to evoke a sense both of connectedness and isolation.

Indian Corn, 2007, Acrylic yarn, clay, cork, fabric, bamboo and cans, 7 x 6 x 11' (Installation)Indian Corn2007Acrylic yarn, clay, cork, fabric, bamboo and cans7 x 6 x 11 feet (Installation)

Indian Corn, 2007, Acrylic yarn, clay, cork, fabric, bamboo and cans, 7 x 6 x 11 feet (Detail)Indian Corn2007Acrylic yarn, clay, cork, fabric, bamboo and cans7 x 6 x 11 feet (Detail)

Indian Corn 2007 Acrylic yarn, clay, cork, fabric, bamboo and cans 7 x 6 x 11 feet (Detail)Indian Corn2007Acrylic yarn, clay, cork, fabric, bamboo and cans7 x 6 x 11 feet (Detail)

Intelligent Design, 2007, Guest organized by Rico Gatson and Ellie Murphy, Momenta Art Brooklyn, Installation viewIntelligent Design 2007Guest organized by Rico Gatson and Ellie MurphyMomenta Art BrooklynInstallation viewMomenta Art is pleased to present a group show organized by artists Rico Gatson and Ellie Murphy. Using system theory as a starting point to enter into emotional realms and states of mind, the artists in Intelligent Design use the abstraction inherent in "system" to approach a diversity of subjects–mathematical, scientific or technological systems; social systems that define gender and race; visual systems of pattern and craft; the cultural systems that create art and music, religion and history.Artists use system in their work to get at something vast and unsystematic, using sense to get to a place that does not make sense. Rosalind Krauss asserts in her essay "Grids" that the use of system makes it possible for artists to combine the sacred and secular without having to choose between them. But the work we have selected takes this combination to a new place. System here is freed by an increased technological and scientific sense of interconnectedness from the need to be either sacred, profane or both. It assumes the systematic task of existing (a task both physical and spiritual), as it purports to discover the collective hum it believes—it knows –is out there.The show has a taxonomy of emotion underlying it. The artists don't decide between intelligent design and the theory of evolution. They fix their belief in one system and all systems simultaneously. By definition, system describes both the individual elements and their interaction and functioning together as a whole. Gatson and Murphy are fascinated by artists taking the scientific, mathematical and technological to personal, emotional or spiritual regions. System in this sense brings together the abstract and the concrete. It is where the personal becomes the universal.

First Love, 2007, Glass, paper, tape, plexiglass, wood and fluorescent lights 41 cups with president, 41 saucers with first lady, 4 x 3 x 3'First Love2007Glass, paper, tape, plexiglass, wood and fluorescent lights41 cups with president, 41 saucers with first lady, 4 x 3 x 3'

First Love (detail), 2007, Glass, paper, tape, plexiglass, wood and fluorescent lights 41 cups with president, 41 saucers with first lady, 4 x 3 x 3'First Love (detail)2007Glass, paper, tape, plexiglass, wood and fluorescent lights41 cups with president, 41 saucers with first lady, 4 x 3 x 3'

First Love (detail back), 2007, Glass, paper, tape, plexiglass, wood and fluorescent lights 41 cups with president, 41 saucers with first lady, 4 x 3 x 3'First Love (detail back)2007Glass, paper, tape, plexiglass, wood and fluorescent lights41 cups with president, 41 saucers with first lady, 4 x 3 x 3'

First Love (Installation view at Shared Women LACE), 2007, Glass, paper, tape, plexiglass, wood and fluorescent lights 41 cups with president, 41 saucers with first lady, 4 x 3 x 3'First Love (Installation view at Shared Women LACE,Los Angeles Contemporary Exhibitions)2007Glass, paper, tape, plexiglass, wood and fluorescent lights41 cups with president, 41 saucers with first lady, 4 x 3 x 3'

First Love (Installation at Shared Women LACE), 2007, Glass, paper, tape, plexiglass, wood and fluorescent lights 41 cups with president, 41 saucers with first lady, 4 x 3 x 3'First Love (Installation at Shared Women LACE, os Angeles Contemporary Exhibitions)2007Glass, paper, tape, plexiglass, wood and fluorescent lights41 cups with president, 41 saucers with first lady, 4 x 3 x 3'

First Love, 2000, Digital collage drawing (edition of 5), 18 x 24"First Love2000Digital collage drawing (edition of 5)18 x 24"

Untitled (Tassels Drawing), 2005, Digital drawing ink jet on paper, 9 x 12"Untitled (Tassels Drawing)2005Digital drawing ink jet on paper9 x 12"

Mandelbroot Sisters, 2006, Acrylic yarn, 5' x 6'Mandelbroot Sisters2006Acrylic yarn5' x 6'

Mandelbroot Sisters, 2006, Acrylic yarn, 5' x 6' (Detail)Mandelbroot Sisters2006Acrylic yarn5' x 6' (Detail)

Tassels, 2006, Acrylic yarn and beads with nylon rope, 3 pieces each around 1.5' x 7'Tassels2006Acrylic yarn and beads with nylon rope3 pieces each around 1.5' x 7'

Tassels, 2006, Acrylic yarn and beads with nylon rope, 3 pieces each around 1.5' x 7' (Detail)Tassels2006Acrylic yarn and beads with nylon rope3 pieces each around 1.5' x 7' (Detail)

bioGRAPHY: A Site Specific Project for the Brooklyn Public Library, 2005, 60 library books, paper, photo, yarn, tape and metal, 7 x 4 x 11' (Installation view)bioGRAPHY: A Site Specific Project for the Brooklyn Public Library200560 library books, paper, photo, yarn, tape and metal7 x 4 x 11 feet (Installation dimensions variable)In June of 2005, I began to visit each of the 60 libraries of Brooklyn Public Library, starting with the DeKalb library, closest to my home. I took with me my partner, Simon, and our 4-year-old son Malcolm Edgar Heathcote. I continued to take Malcolm to each of the Brooklyn libraries, checking out a book, which I read, and recording our visit with a photograph of Malcolm.The resulting sculpture, created from these borrowed materials, is meant to map the personal experience of one individual in the context of the common cultural community—fusing the stories we share with the ones that are ours alone.

bioGRAPHY: A Site Specific Project for the Brooklyn Public Library, 2005, 60 library books, paper, photo, yarn, tape and metal, 7 x 4 x 11 feet (Detail)bioGRAPHY: A Site Specific Project for the Brooklyn Public Library200560 library books, paper, photo, yarn, tape and metal7 x 4 x 11 feet (Detail)In June of 2005, I began to visit each of the 60 libraries of Brooklyn Public Library, starting with the DeKalb library, closest to my home. I took with me my partner, Simon, and our 4-year-old son Malcolm Edgar Heathcote. I continued to take Malcolm to each of the Brooklyn libraries, checking out a book, which I read, and recording our visit with a photograph of Malcolm.The resulting sculpture, created from these borrowed materials, is meant to map the personal experience of one individual in the context of the common cultural community—fusing the stories we share with the ones that are ours alone.

bioGRAPHY, 2007, Ink jet on matte photo paper and vellum, 60 photos and 60 pieces of writing (Dimensions variable installed at Grassmacks Gallery Minnesota)bioGRAPHY: A Site Specific Project for the Brooklyn Public Library2007Ink jet on matte photo paper and vellum60 photos and 60 pieces of writing (Dimensions variable installed at Grassmacks Gallery Minnesota)In June of 2005, I began to visit each of the 60 libraries of Brooklyn Public Library, starting with the DeKalb library, closest to my home. I took with me my partner, Simon, and our 4-year-old son Malcolm Edgar Heathcote. I continued to take Malcolm to each of the Brooklyn libraries, checking out a book, which I read, and recording our visit with a photograph of Malcolm.The resulting sculpture, created from these borrowed materials, is meant to map the personal experience of one individual in the context of the common cultural community—fusing the stories we share with the ones that are ours alone. I reinstalled the documentation here in the Grassmacks Gallery space in St. Paul, Minnesota.

bioGRAPHY, 2007, Ink jet on matte photo paper and vellum, 60 photos and 60 pieces of writing, (Dimensions variable installed at Grassmacks Gallery Minnesota)bioGRAPHY: A Site Specific Project for the Brooklyn Public Library2007Ink jet on matte photo paper and vellum60 photos and 60 pieces of writing (Dimensions variable installed at Grassmacks Gallery Minnesota)In June of 2005, I began to visit each of the 60 libraries of Brooklyn Public Library, starting with the DeKalb library, closest to my home. I took with me my partner, Simon, and our 4-year-old son Malcolm Edgar Heathcote. I continued to take Malcolm to each of the Brooklyn libraries, checking out a book, which I read, and recording our visit with a photograph of Malcolm.The resulting sculpture, created from these borrowed materials, is meant to map the personal experience of one individual in the context of the common cultural community—fusing the stories we share with the ones that are ours alone. I reinstalled the documentation here in the Grassmacks Gallery space in St. Paul, Minnesota.

bioGRAPHY, 2007, Ink jet on matte photo paper and vellum, 60 photos and 60 pieces of writing (Dimensions variable installed at Grassmacks Gallery Minnesota)bioGRAPHY: A Site Specific Project for the Brooklyn Public Library2007Ink jet on matte photo paper and vellum60 photos and 60 pieces of writing (Dimensions variable installed at Grassmacks Gallery Minnesota)In June of 2005, I began to visit each of the 60 libraries of Brooklyn Public Library, starting with the DeKalb library, closest to my home. I took with me my partner, Simon, and our 4-year-old son Malcolm Edgar Heathcote. I continued to take Malcolm to each of the Brooklyn libraries, checking out a book, which I read, and recording our visit with a photograph of Malcolm.The resulting sculpture, created from these borrowed materials, is meant to map the personal experience of one individual in the context of the common cultural community—fusing the stories we share with the ones that are ours alone. I reinstalled the documentation here in the Grassmacks Gallery space in St. Paul, Minnesota.

bioGRAPHY: A Site Specific Project for the Brooklyn Public Library, 2005, 60 library books, paper, photo, yarn, tape and metal, 7 x 4 x 11' (Detail)bioGRAPHY: A Site Specific Project for the Brooklyn Public Library200560 library books, paper, photo, yarn, tape and metal7 x 4 x 11 feet (Detail)In June of 2005, I began to visit each of the 60 libraries of Brooklyn Public Library, starting with the DeKalb library, closest to my home. I took with me my partner, Simon, and our 4-year-old son Malcolm Edgar Heathcote. I continued to take Malcolm to each of the Brooklyn libraries, checking out a book, which I read, and recording our visit with a photograph of Malcolm.The resulting sculpture, created from these borrowed materials, is meant to map the personal experience of one individual in the context of the common cultural community—fusing the stories we share with the ones that are ours alone.

bioGRAPHY: A Site Specific Project for the Brooklyn Public Library, 2005, 60 library books, paper, photo, yarn, tape and metal, 7 x 4 x 11' (Installation)bioGRAPHY: A Site Specific Project for the Brooklyn Public Library200560 library books, paper, photo, yarn, tape and metal7 x 4 x 11 feet (Installation)In June of 2005, I began to visit each of the 60 libraries of Brooklyn Public Library, starting with the DeKalb library, closest to my home. I took with me my partner, Simon, and our 4-year-old son Malcolm Edgar Heathcote. I continued to take Malcolm to each of the Brooklyn libraries, checking out a book, which I read, and recording our visit with a photograph of Malcolm.The resulting sculpture, created from these borrowed materials, is meant to map the personal experience of one individual in the context of the common cultural community—fusing the stories we share with the ones that are ours alone.

bioGRAPHY: A Site Specific Project for the Brooklyn Public Library, 2005, 60 library books, paper, photo, yarn, tape and metal, 7 x 4 x 11' (Detail)bioGRAPHY: A Site Specific Project for the Brooklyn Public Library200560 library books, paper, photo, yarn, tape and metal7 x 4 x 11 feet (Detail)In June of 2005, I began to visit each of the 60 libraries of Brooklyn Public Library, starting with the DeKalb library, closest to my home. I took with me my partner, Simon, and our 4-year-old son Malcolm Edgar Heathcote. I continued to take Malcolm to each of the Brooklyn libraries, checking out a book, which I read, and recording our visit with a photograph of Malcolm.The resulting sculpture, created from these borrowed materials, is meant to map the personal experience of one individual in the context of the common cultural community—fusing the stories we share with the ones that are ours alone.

bioGRAPHY: A Site Specific Project for the Brooklyn Public Library, 2005, 60 library books, paper, photo, yarn, tape and metal, 7 x 4 x 11' (Work in progress in studio)bioGRAPHY: A Site Specific Project for the Brooklyn Public Library200560 library books, paper, photo, yarn, tape and metal7 x 4 x 11 feet (Work in progress in studio)In June of 2005, I began to visit each of the 60 libraries of Brooklyn Public Library, starting with the DeKalb library, closest to my home. I took with me my partner, Simon, and our 4-year-old son Malcolm Edgar Heathcote. I continued to take Malcolm to each of the Brooklyn libraries, checking out a book, which I read, and recording our visit with a photograph of Malcolm.The resulting sculpture, created from these borrowed materials, is meant to map the personal experience of one individual in the context of the common cultural community—fusing the stories we share with the ones that are ours alone.

bioGRAPHY: A Site Specific Project for the Brooklyn Public Library, 2005, Mounted digital photographic drawing, 36 x 30" (edition of 5)bioGRAPHY: A Site Specific Project for the Brooklyn Public Library2005Mounted digital photographic drawing36 x 30" (edition of 5)In June of 2005, I began to visit each of the 60 libraries of Brooklyn Public Library, starting with the DeKalb library, closest to my home. I took with me my partner, Simon, and our 4-year-old son Malcolm Edgar Heathcote. I continued to take Malcolm to each of the Brooklyn libraries, checking out a book, which I read, and recording our visit with a photograph of Malcolm.The resulting sculpture, created from these borrowed materials, is meant to map the personal experience of one individual in the context of the common cultural community—fusing the stories we share with the ones that are ours alone.

River Abacus, 2004, Fiberglass, nylon, plastic beads and cement, 16 x 20' (Installation outdoors, dimensions variable)River Abacus2004Fiberglass, nylon, plastic beads and cement16 x 20 feet (Installation outdoors, dimensions variable)The ten different colored strands of beads represent the ten longest rivers in the United States: the Missouri, Mississippi, Yukon, St. Lawrence, Rio Grande, Arkansas, Colorado, Ohio, Columbia, and the Red. They are exact scale models, with each bead representing a mile of a river's length. This piece and its creation produce antiphonal narratives: one about the human-scale sculpture, formed by an individual stringing individual beads, one by one, and the other, concerning the flowing expanse of great rivers, mile after mile, shared by many, controlled by none. The site, presents a third narrative strain, tending to amplify and resolve some of the same material.

River Abacus, 2004, Fiberglass, nylon, plastic beads and cement, 16 x 20' (Detail)River Abacus2004Fiberglass, nylon, plastic beads and cement16 x 20 feet (Detail)The ten different colored strands of beads represent the ten longest rivers in the United States: the Missouri, Mississippi, Yukon, St. Lawrence, Rio Grande, Arkansas, Colorado, Ohio, Columbia, and the Red. They are exact scale models, with each bead representing a mile of a river's length. This piece and its creation produce antiphonal narratives: one about the human-scale sculpture, formed by an individual stringing individual beads, one by one, and the other, concerning the flowing expanse of great rivers, mile after mile, shared by many, controlled by none. The site, presents a third narrative strain, tending to amplify and resolve some of the same material.

River Abacus, 2004, Fiberglass, nylon, plastic beads and cement, 16 x 20' (Installation)River Abacus2004Fiberglass, nylon, plastic beads and cement16 x 20 feet (Installation)The ten different colored strands of beads represent the ten longest rivers in the United States: the Missouri, Mississippi, Yukon, St. Lawrence, Rio Grande, Arkansas, Colorado, Ohio, Columbia, and the Red. They are exact scale models, with each bead representing a mile of a river's length. This piece and its creation produce antiphonal narratives: one about the human-scale sculpture, formed by an individual stringing individual beads, one by one, and the other, concerning the flowing expanse of great rivers, mile after mile, shared by many, controlled by none. The site, presents a third narrative strain, tending to amplify and resolve some of the same material.

Gene Pairs ... With Ellipses, 2003, Plastic pony beads and nylon string, 35 x 25' (Installed at the Bureau of Criminal Investigation in Minneapolis, MN)Gene Pairs ... With Ellipses2003Plastic pony beads and nylon string35 x 25 feet (Installed at the Bureau of Criminal Investigation Building in Minneapolis, Minnesota)Gene Pairs ...With Ellipses consists of 23 pairs of suspended bead strands representing each chromosome in the human genome.Proteins of the first 1,000 base pairs of DNA on each chromosome are strung in opaque beads, while proteins of the final 1,000 base pairs in translucent ones. Green signifies the protein Adenine; blue, Cytosine; yellow, Guanine; and red, Thymine. The strands hang in numerical order, beginning at the top of the stairs with Chromosome 1 and continuing through Chromosome 22 toward the doorway. The final pair of bead strands represent the sex chromosome, with the beginning taken from Chromosome Y and the end taken from Chromosome X.By passing beneath the sculpture and through this map of the genome, viewers supply the missing central parts of the sequence or unrepresented segments of DNA code--the conceptual ellipses--via their own unique genetic material, interposed between the known beginning and end points of life.

Gene Pairs ... With Ellipses, 2003, Plastic pony beads and nylon string, 35 x 25' (Installed at the Bureau of Criminal Investigation, Minneapolis, MN)Gene Pairs ... With Ellipses2003Plastic pony beads and nylon string35 x 25 feet (Installed at the Bureau of Criminal Investigation Building in Minneapolis, Minnesota)Gene Pairs ...With Ellipses consists of 23 pairs of suspended bead strands representing each chromosome in the human genome.Proteins of the first 1,000 base pairs of DNA on each chromosome are strung in opaque beads, while proteins of the final 1,000 base pairs in translucent ones. Green signifies the protein Adenine; blue, Cytosine; yellow, Guanine; and red, Thymine. The strands hang in numerical order, beginning at the top of the stairs with Chromosome 1 and continuing through Chromosome 22 toward the doorway. The final pair of bead strands represent the sex chromosome, with the beginning taken from Chromosome Y and the end taken from Chromosome X.By passing beneath the sculpture and through this map of the genome, viewers supply the missing central parts of the sequence or unrepresented segments of DNA code--the conceptual ellipses--via their own unique genetic material, interposed between the known beginning and end points of life.

Gene Pairs ... With Ellipses, 2003, Plastic pony beads and nylon string, 35 x 25' (Detail)Gene Pairs ... With Ellipses2003Plastic pony beads and nylon string35 x 25 feet (Installed at the Bureau of Criminal Investigation Building in Minneapolis, Minnesota)Gene Pairs ...With Ellipses consists of 23 pairs of suspended bead strands representing each chromosome in the human genome.Proteins of the first 1,000 base pairs of DNA on each chromosome are strung in opaque beads, while proteins of the final 1,000 base pairs in translucent ones. Green signifies the protein Adenine; blue, Cytosine; yellow, Guanine; and red, Thymine. The strands hang in numerical order, beginning at the top of the stairs with Chromosome 1 and continuing through Chromosome 22 toward the doorway. The final pair of bead strands represent the sex chromosome, with the beginning taken from Chromosome Y and the end taken from Chromosome X.By passing beneath the sculpture and through this map of the genome, viewers supply the missing central parts of the sequence or unrepresented segments of DNA code--the conceptual ellipses--via their own unique genetic material, interposed between the known beginning and end points of life.

Gene Pairs ... With Ellipses, 2002, Plastic pony beads, nylon string, wood, metal, vinyl and cement, 35 x 25' (Franconia Sculpture Park)Gene Pairs ... With Ellipses2002Plastic pony beads, nylon string, wood, metal, vinyl and cement35 x 25 feet (Installation at Franconia Sculpture Park)Gene Pairs ...With Ellipses consists of 23 pairs of suspended bead strands representing each chromosome in the human genome.Proteins of the first 1,000 base pairs of DNA on each chromosome are strung in opaque beads, while proteins of the final 1,000 base pairs in translucent ones. Green signifies the protein Adenine; blue, Cytosine; yellow, Guanine; and red, Thymine. The strands hang in numerical order, beginning with Chromosome 1 and continuing through Chromosome 22. The final pair of bead strands represent the sex chromosome, with the beginning taken from Chromosome Y and the end taken from Chromosome X.By passing through this map of the genome, viewers supply the missing central parts of the sequence or unrepresented segments of DNA code--the conceptual ellipses--via their own unique genetic material, interposed between the known beginning and end points of life.

"In the beginning was the Word..." (Binary Triptych), 2001, Clay, metal and wood, 1 1/2 x 6 feet, 1 1/2 x 7 feet, 1 1/2 x 8 feet"In the beginning was the Word..." (Binary Triptych)2001Clay, metal and wood1 1/2 x 6 feet, 1 1/2 x 7 feet, 1 1/2 x 8 feet

"In the beginning was the Word..." (Binary Triptych), 2001, Clay, metal and wood, 1 1/2 x 6 feet, 1 1/2 x 7 feet, 1 1/2 x 8 feet (Detail)"In the beginning was the Word..." (Binary Triptych)2001Clay, metal and wood1 1/2 x 6 feet, 1 1/2 x 7 feet, 1 1/2 x 8 feet (Detail)

"In the beginning was the Word..." (Binary Triptych), 2001, Clay, metal and wood, 1 1/2 x 6 feet, 1 1/2 x 7 feet, 1 1/2 x 8 feet"In the beginning was the Word..." (Binary Triptych)2001Clay, metal and wood1 1/2 x 6 feet, 1 1/2 x 7 feet, 1 1/2 x 8 feet

"In the beginning was the Word..." (Binary Triptych), 2001, Clay, metal and wood, 1 1/2 x 6 feet, 1 1/2 x 7 feet, 1 1/2 x 8 feet (Detail)"In the beginning was the Word..." (Binary Triptych)2001Clay, metal and wood1 1/2 x 6 feet, 1 1/2 x 7 feet, 1 1/2 x 8 feet (Detail)