A journey through the mind of an artist | Dustin Yellin
Growing up and Early Artistic Experiences
The speaker shares their background of being raised by lesbians in the mountains and moving to New York City. They discuss their early artistic experiences, including burying a box with objects in it for future discovery.
Childhood and Moving to New York City
- Raised by lesbians in the mountains.
- Moved to New York City.
- Early experiences in New York City messed with their head.
Burying a Box
- At eight years old, buried a box containing a dollar bill, pen, and fork in Colorado.
- Imagined that future humanoids or aliens would find the box and learn about human culture.
- Uncertain about what information the objects would convey.
Continued Fascination with Boxes
- Despite growing older, still continues to make boxes.
- Reflects on the irony of still making boxes after 30 years.
Artistic Collage in Hawaii
- Enjoyed hiking and surfing in Hawaii.
- Made a collage using ripped-up dictionary pages covered in resin.
- Accidentally trapped a bee within the resin due to fear of bees.
Drawing on Resin Layers
- Discovered the ability to draw free-floating lines on layers of resin.
- Started creating relationships and telling stories between found objects.
Transition from Resin Sculptures to Glass Drawings
The speaker discusses transitioning from creating resin sculptures with drawings inside them to drawing on layers of glass. They explain how this change allowed them to avoid health risks associated with resin.
Health Concerns with Resin Sculptures
- Realized that working with resin was harmful to their health.
- Worried about potential negative effects on their well-being.
Drawing on Layers of Glass
- Started drawing on layers of glass instead of using resin.
- Created three-dimensional compositions by layering multiple glass sheets.
- This change allowed them to avoid the health risks associated with resin.
"The Triptych"
- Created a large artwork called "The Triptych."
- Inspired by Hieronymus Bosch's "[The] Garden of Earthly Delights."
- Describes the composition and dimensions of "The Triptych."
Description of "The Triptych"
The speaker provides a detailed description of their artwork, "The Triptych," explaining various elements and narratives depicted in the piece.
Overview of "The Triptych"
- Weighs 24,000 pounds.
- Measures 18 feet long.
- Double-sided, making it 36 feet of composition.
Blood Fountain and Jesus with Locusts
- Depicts a blood fountain on one side.
- Features Jesus surrounded by locusts on the left side.
Animal-headed Creatures and Underworld
- Shows animal-headed creatures traveling between two worlds.
- Represents a transition from the representational world to an analog-mesh underworld.
Mass Suicide into the Ocean
- Depicts animal-headed creatures near a lighthouse about to commit mass suicide into the ocean.
Ocean Composition
- The ocean is composed of thousands of elements, including references to various events and figures such as Billy Graham, Osama Bin Laden's shelter, and the Horizon from the oil spill.
Lady Creature with Mythological References
- A lady creature emerges from the ocean.
- She spits oil into one hand while clouds come out of her other hand.
- Her hands resemble scales, symbolizing balance between Earth and cosmos.
Other Side of "The Triptych"
- On the other side, she has a trunk resembling a bird's beak and spits clouds out of it.
Serpent's Tail and Volcano Fire
-Her 18-foot-long serpent's tail catches fire from the back of a volcano.
Cycloptic Eyeball and Terrorist Cards
- Her tail terminates in a cycloptic eyeball made out of 1986 terrorist cards.
- Mentions the uniqueness and ahead-of-its-time nature of these cards.
"Psychogeographies" Project
The speaker introduces their ongoing project called "Psychogeographies," which involves creating human-shaped archives using ripped-up media and matter. They explain how these sculptures act as an archive of culture.
"Psychogeographies" Project
- Six-year project to create 100 human-shaped sculptures.
- Each sculpture represents an archive of culture using ripped-up media and matter.
Cells and Divisions
- Sculptures resemble cells that come together and divide.
Walking Through the Sculptures
- Visitors can walk through the sculptures, which are like 3,000-pound microscope slides with humans inside.
Unique Features of a Specific Sculpture
- Describes one sculpture with a little cave in its chest.
New Section
In this section, the speaker quickly introduces their works and discusses the concept of layers.
Layers in Artworks
- The speaker briefly explains their artworks, mentioning that they consist of layers.
- They mention a specific artwork where a body is depicted being split in half.
- Another artwork features two heads communicating with each other.
- There are pills coming out of a weird statue and going into one head, while inside the chest cavity there is a small forest scene.
New Section
This section focuses on the concept of boxes and how it relates to our existence.
Boxes as Metaphors
- The speaker introduces the idea that we are all in boxes, such as the solar system being a box.
- They mention their latest box called Pioneer Works, which houses various disciplines like physics, neuroscience, painting, music, writing, radio station, museum, school, publishing arm for content dissemination, and a garden.
New Section
This section emphasizes the importance of collaboration and breaking down barriers to create positive change.
Shaking Up the Box
- The speaker describes how shaking up the box (Pioneer Works) leads to people interacting like particles.
- They believe that changing the world involves redefining ourselves internally and recognizing our interconnectedness.
- The speaker challenges notions of difference based on countries, borders, and religion by highlighting that we are all made up of the same stuff in the same box.
- They emphasize the need for exchanging ideas harmoniously to avoid dire consequences.
Conclusion
The transcript concludes with gratitude from the speaker.