Nicole Aptekar - Expanded Taxonomy
Expanded Taxonomy is a 15-piece collection of laser cut sculptures built out of composite images. Depth emerges from Aptekar’s subtractive process to reveal abstract forms. Expanded Taxonomy utilizes negative space to uncover nuanced structures. The sculptures that populate this exhibit imply time by iteration; the subtle changes of each layer uncover new images, the sum of which give birth to Aptekar's sculptures. The modifications of each tier form the paper skeleton that is the framework of her 3D designs.
This series explores elegance and articulation. Aptekar makes adept use of her own laser to achieve a clean precision. Her expertise in designing complex structures and executing them in a decisive manner is not new to Aptekar's work, but in Expanded Taxonomy Aptekar showcases yet another evolution of her process. The technical achievements become transparent as beauty of the work entices the observer's attention.
Aptekar has collaborated with Mary Franck of Obscura Digital on another work that uses projection mapping on a large cardboard piece. Expanded Taxonomy also includes a collaboration with Ian Baker of Ardent Heavy Industries that utilizes intersections of vinyl that begin inside of the frame but branch outside of it.
The process of making these works is like hunting—traveling through all the possible shapes to find one that speaks. Once discovered, this abstract form is held captive like a biological specimen. Shiny pins, screws, and hardware make it a part of this world, restraining it in its frame in a way that distances it from its platonic digital origins.
The pieces you see here are milestones along a path. Each one must be made for the process to continue. Each piece, when being produced, commands my full attention. It alters my creative trajectory, and the form of all future pieces. Compounded with the prior works, each artwork represents the knowledge that I have gained.
I have become addicted to rapid iteration. All of my materials and methods have evolved to facilitate a more fluid path from idea, through design, to final construction. My goal is to use simple platonic shapes from the digital world to realize complex, graceful organic forms in tangible reality. I do this through repetition and carefully constrained composition.
For the basic primitive in my paper works, I’ve chosen the circle and X, often assembling them into an intersecting shape. While designed to have no inherent meaning, through repetition and exploration I began to self-identify with the form, and it became my logo. Like a stop sign or a familiar brand, it suggests something so commonplace that it might blend into the fabric of urban life.
I watch the viewport with my frame-shaped trap, searching for the perfect composition. I seek the moment where the form is perceptible, but only as a suggestion, leaving the observer to decipher the piece, inviting exploration.
With her clearly articulated vision, and a uniquely interdisciplinary command of technology, Nicole Aptekar is at the forefront of the emerging procedural aesthetics movement. Expanded Taxonomy is her debut New York show, following a sold-out solo debut at San Francisco's Satellite66 gallery. With a rigorous dedication to her craft, Nicole's work is redefining the relationship between state-of-the-art fabrication technologies and fine art.
Nicole is the Technical Advisor for pioneering creative technology space Grey Area Foundation For The Arts (GAFFTA) and a co-founder of the internationally exhibited Ardent Heavy Industries industrial arts collective. Before focusing her attention on smaller studio compositions, she was the co-designer of Syzygryd, a massive scale sculpture: electronics interleaved with industrial components, multi-ton engineered metalworks, music and light.
Photos courtesy of Audrey Penven
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