This work explores the power of mold that has overtaken rotting fruit. Molding is a natural process that helps decompose organic matter. Some molds can be used to create antibiotics, cortisone, cheese, or other beneficial goods; some molds can cause health problems like asthma or allergic reactions. Mold serves as a metaphor for anything that can consume someone, be it positive (like love or joy) or negative (horror, fear, or grief).

Inspired by Félix Méheux’s Test Tube with Fungus Samples(1887), this work’s contents were made by placing fruit with invisible mold spores in humid, enclosed plastic containers stored for several days in a warm area, until mold began to grow. Then, the most repulsive-looking moldy pieces were selected and placed in a drawer of a digitally fabricated, ebony-stained, simple birch plywood box. To protect viewers from inhaling mold spores, a clear acrylic sheet was placed over the drawer. The partially opened morgue-like drawer entices viewers to look inside, where the rotting contents rest on rich, black velvet, which has a nap similar to the mold’s. 

When encountered in daily life, mold is usually quickly recognized and discarded; in this work, it’s displayed for inspection and contemplation.