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• Auction House:
  Mossgreen
• Sale Name:
  The Michèle Asprey Collection of Australian Contemporary Art
• Sale Date:
  10 Nov 2013 ~ 4pm
• Lot #:
  6
• Lot Description:
  Patricia Piccinini
  (Born 1965)
  36 degrees on the 14th, from the series SO2 (2000)
  type C colour photograph; edition 10/60
  80cm high x 80cm wide
  signed, dated and numbered to margin
• Provenance:
  Roslyn Oxley9 Gallery, Sydney
• Notes:
  Artist Statement for the Series S02, 2000 The scientific name for the Siren Mole (SO2) is Excellocephala Parthenopa. Excellocephala means 'extremely strange head', a reference to the animal's almost impossibly long and heavy, shovel-like snout. Parthenopa refers to the mythical tale of Parthenope, a siren found cast up drowned on the shores of Naples. Nobody was really sure what Parthenope was or could say for certain where she came from. Yet there she was, a fact despite her mysterious origins. I am grateful to Paul Andrews, a taxonomist at Taronga Zoo, for this wonderfully romantic classification. It is from here that SO2 gets its common name; the Siren Mole. The Siren Mole (SO2) is an animal designed for genetic engineering. The work deals directly with the implications of contemporary genetic technologies, but does so in a complex and ambiguous way. Because the creature is an animal, rather than a human being, it allows audiences to address genetic issues without the heightened emotions that the idea of human cloning and manipulation evokes. Through the Siren Mole I am interested in asking questions such as 'why would you create new life?' and 'where would it belong?' The Siren Mole is a mythical creature, not because it is unreal but in the sense of it figuring social forces, as does any good myth. The truth is that it is becoming very easy to believe in Siren Moles. It is increasingly difficult to disbelieve anything that we see or hear about. Zoologists who have examined the Siren Mole have often commented on its vulnerability. Heavy head, pale hairless skin and short, frail limbs put it in danger from both predators and the elements. I have created an animal that needs to be looked after, an animal in fact that cries out to be protected. Siren Moles come pre-domesticated, their very existence is predicated on their symbiotic relationship with us. To my mind the fatal flaw that condemns Doctor Frankenstein in Mary Shelley's story is not hubris. It is not that he has sought to, or even succeeded in, creating life from nothing but his own desire and reason. Frankenstein's mistake is that having done this he does not take responsibility for his creation. Having brought his creature into the world he should also be liable for its life here. He was not a good parent. The Siren Moles have been seen in the past roaming about in a variety of urban habitats, always in proximity to and interacting with people. In this series, I wanted to show them in their natural habitat, the laboratory. I was keen to examine the Siren Moles interacting with their closest evolutionary partner, scientists.
• Estimate:
  A$1,500 - 3,000
• Realised Price:
  *****
  

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• Category:
  Art

This Sale has been held and this item is no longer available. Details are provided for information purposes only.