Kelly Temple

My work questions our various levels of comfort with medical interventions from non-elective to elective procedures; focusing on interactions between the living and nonliving; the human and machine. If it were not one of automatic recoil, how would our perceptions of the body differ, and to what societal effect? Surface is an access point, initiating dialogue about before and after corporeal intervention. Through growth, manipulation, and mimicry, the production of artificial leather allows her access to past moments of the failed, repaired, and supplemented body. Her methods of making are steeped in self-reflection as a means of coping and acceptance; to revisit provides time, reevaluation, and desensitization. When worn, these organic and mechanical combinations conjure notions of unnecessary adornment, physical identity, and self-ownership. Placing these works on the body as jewels suggests that there is value in the experience of the failed body. I aim to redefine the way we view the supplemented body. I imagine the wearer to experience levels of bodily awareness, appreciation, and estrangement as they look down on these necklaces and brooches marked with aging skin-like qualities. The aim is to allow the viewer and wearer to confront, invite, or encourage dialogue – to stimulate self-reflection and even awareness of the supplemented body including our own.