HOSTING PARASITES
A human relationship is to a certain degree either symbiotic or parasitic. It always consists of giving and taking, so the partners in a relationship are parasites and hosts at the same time.
"Hosting Parasites" are small objects which can be attached to the body. They blur the borders between parasite and host and adapt the parasitic way of connecting themselves to their host. In this way they have a physical influence on the body. In their appearance and behaviour they should be on one hand uncanny and confronting, but on the other hand intriguing and beautiful in their own way.
Many parasites suck the blood of their hosts. The single “suckers” can be worn as kind of brooch, which attaches to the body by means of a vacuum. The skin under the glass cup gets sucked in and forms a little bump, which turns red after a while. The necklace works the same way. It consists of ten small cups with pumps, which are connected by a very thin silk cord. They can be attached individually anywhere on the skin, and shape the necklace this way.The pumps don’t hurt the body, but they leave marks when wearing them for a longer time. These marks form a temporary, decorative legacy of the parasite.
The hand-pieces imitate bodies of parasites, which when worn, turn your fingers into their limbs. They can be put on like gloves or hand puppets. They are made out of skin coloured textiles with foam filling and incorporate into your hand or fingers. By their colours, materials and structures, they merge with the rest of the body, while still looking unfamiliar and strange.
The porcelain pieces are inspired by parasites which get under your skin. The series consists of four different sized segmented porcelain bodies, inspired by maggots, which can be tied to different parts of your body by a silver cord. The silver cord twines into the folds of your skin and fat and repeats the structure of the parasite on your body (“…wie die Made im Speck”, German saying). After removing them, they leave imprints on your skin.
