Parched Limbs

Parched Limbs 2018
Installation | Drinking straws, Diet Coke, dark rum, cola scent | Slade School of Art, London

A cerebral creature caught between survival and collapse is depleted of resources. Climbing tendrils and adolescent vines of black and transparent machined straws cling onto pipes and cross in confused directions; escaping ends leak plastic calories and an odour of flat fizz. The scattered straws and spills prompt a choreography of careful navigation; periodically nourished with drinks, the sculpture needs ongoing care. Diet Coke pairs a symbol of popular culture with a bodily regulator in the context of dark rum's colonial history. Addressing ecological anxieties, the creation ran parallel to the introduction of the UK ban on plastic straws, later issued in 2020 (the earliest straws were made from gold and precious metals, dating back to the ancient Sumerian era 3000BC (Parker, 2019)).

Photo: Katarzyna Perlak