The works in this
series depict enlarged barbed wire with spikes that are almost the size of
human ngers. Barbed wire is an image recognized by human kind all over the
world in different cultures and geographical places. Wherever there are humans,
there is always barbed wire. The barbed wire is a physical image of borders,
metaphorically and realistically. The works in this series use two materials to
illustrate the multiple meanings within the image of the barbed wire. The first
element is taking the physical image of barbed wire and enlarging it as if one
would use a magnifying glass. The second element is the use of two opposite
materials—the massive cast bronze and the delicate, fragile, and transparent
glass. The juxtaposition illustrates the elusive and deceiving de nitions of
borders.

The circle of barbed
wire in cast bronze is one meter (3 feet) in diameter, positioned 3-4 inches
from the wall. When lit, it creates a dark and powerful shadow that echoes the
strong form of the circled barbed wire. The full circle is a metaphor in many
cultures of the basic cycle of life and death.
The glass circle of barbed wire
adds fragility and beauty to the image. The lit glass has a glittering effect
both in its form and shadow, different from the massive bronze and its ominous
shadow. Putting the two circles in juxtaposition illustrates the many aspects
of borders and boundaries.

The Duality of
Borders
Society could not exist without boundaries. As individuals, we need to
recognize the boundaries between ourselves and our fellow beings. What I want
does not have to be what the other wants. What I like does not have to be what
the other likes. What I prefer does not have to be what the other prefers.
Tolerance of differences allows coexistence. However, that tolerance may be
quite fragile and easily shattered.
Intolerance turns boundaries into destructive
practices on individual and societal levels. Rather than respecting differences
people may use them to devalue the other and subsequently, keep away from them,
curb their rights, keep them out, kill them or even mass exterminate them.
The
Barbed Wire Series addresses this duality.