2025
Surface Tension was created for the Hand Bookbinders of California’s 53rd annual exhibit. HBC members were invited to transform pieces of a historic Gilbert Baker Rainbow Flag, which once flew proudly over Harvey Milk Plaza, into original artist books. The exchange was conceived of and facilitated by Insiya Dhatt.
Surface Tension celebrates slippery pluralities. I love what the rainbow flag represents, and that it has become a ubiquitous and essential symbol of our culture. I also love that it acknowledges the complexities of the human experience. The optical phenomenon of an atmospheric rainbow is a continuum, with no bounds on its beauty.
Cut strips of the Baker Rainbow Flag appear in a thin undulating line above and below bands of color studies. The colors of the rainbow are mixed with black, white, warm and cool grays, and the earth tones of sepia and umber to create a truly expansive rainbow, which simultaneously hints at its own limitations. My approach to this project was inspired by Claude Debussy’s famous quote “Music is the space between the notes.” In this case, life lives in the many hues between the six chromatic notes chosen for the rainbow.
Suminagashi became the backdrop both for its beautiful fluidity and transience. While suminagashi translates roughly to “spilled ink,” it also alludes to a sonic experience of air, water, and breath. Life is fragile, and exquisite.
- Archival pigment prints of original suminagashi
- Hand-painted color scales
- Sections of the Gilbert Baker Rainbow Flag
- 6 pages
- 20” x 15” x .5”