Chop

Chop. 2012. Installation with Kona cloth, cast resin. 7ft x 10ft x 3ft.

In northern Canada, men within each community initiate a rite of passage ceremony during the first freeze of winter. The young men venture out into the wilderness, searching for ducks or geese that have been caught in the ice and are frozen in place by their feet. A young man must grab the animal by the neck, and with an axe, chop the animal just above the knees. The duck or goose must be brought back to the community alive, while the pair of bloody stumps remains in the ice until first thaw. Conceptually, the piece illustrates the Canadian tale and alludes to my own experiences coming of age. My grandfather, in his powder blue jump suits, would induct every child into our family with a winter hunt. He passed away shortly before my initiation, and despite the horrific nature of the hunt and the kill, these geese attempt to fill the place where that ritual would have been in my life. The cast resin duck feet extend from the wall, allowing the wall to serve as the axe in the narrative, visually severing the feet.