Jessica Teckemeyer
Skin
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Skin | Media List
Statement
Every person experiences sensations through his/her body. The senses include the haptic sensory system, which includes not only touch but also subcutaneous perception of surface, texture, contour, pressure, temperature, humidity, pain, and visceral sensation. “Skin” allows the viewer to focus on the physical connection between his/her body and the cast silicone. The Braille piece was inspired and titled after Ellen Lupton’s book Skin. The opening paragraph of her book reads:
“Skin is a multilayered, multipurpose organ that shifts from thick to thin, tight to loose, lubricated to dry, across the landscape of the body. Skin, a knowledge-gathering device, responds to heat and cold, pleasure and pain. It lacks definitive boundaries, flowing continuously from the exposed surfaces of the body to its internal cavities. It is both living and dead, a self-repairing, self-replacing material whose exterior is senseless and inert while its inner layers are flush with nerves, glands, and capillaries.”
This is the most poetic description I have ever read. I decided to translate her words into Grade 2 Braille (which is the most commonly used text system for the blind). The translation of words into a tactile system honors her description by allowing viewers to contemplate the experience of sensations through his/her skin.
