Untitled (Nautilus pompilius)
medium: nautilus shell, Arduino, acrylic, silicone tube, air pump, fringe from noisemaker, 9V battery
Ena Kantardžić
Some facts about the nautilus pompilius (or the chambered nautilus):
The nautilus uses jet propulsion to get around the ocean, especially at low depths: “The animal resides in the shell’s largest chamber, while the other chambers function like the ballast tanks of a submarine. This is the secret to how the nautilus swims.” (“What is a nautilus?” National Ocean Services)
They are nicknamed “the living fossil”
Their predators are: Octopus, sharks, triggerfish and turtles
They live between 900-2000FT below the surface of the ocean
Unlike their octopus cousins, they cannot see as well, but have a heightened sense of smell
(What’s a Nautilus? Earth Rangers)
The design for the acrylic is complete and the order has been picked up. This week will be about cutting, arranging and finalizing the composition of the sculpture. This is the final design that I am shipping off to be cut this weekend.
Sometimes creating work means waiting for certain parts or certain layers to dry, etc. Patience becomes an interesting and integral part of being a creator. Here’s an off-topic, nonscientific, method that I engage in within my practice. While I wait for the ability to create this sculpture, I have begun the underpainting for an oil painting in my studio, quite a relaxing gift for the end of the semester. I am painting this having just read a lot about the importance of design and of biomimicry, yet this looks nothing like that and could even be the antithesis of those sets of principles. Yet, I feel like there is something innate about using oil medium.
Some things that inspired me this week: Neri Oxman: On Designing Form and Emanuele Coccia's "The life of plants: A Metaphysics of Mixture" particularly Chapter 6: Tiktaalik roseae and Chapter 7: In open air