Gregor's Room

 

Gregor's Room

Copy paper and ink

Bed dimensions: 5.5" x 3.5" x 8"

Work-in-Progress Photos

(The nightstand was supposed to have legs but I lost them for the final photos)

Artist Statement

This project is in response to Franz Kafka’s short story, The Metamorphosis. As I read this story, I imagined Gregor’s room as dark, slightly worn and rumpled which I kept in mind as I was making this piece. Gregor was told to have been a salesman, the one his family relied on financially which I interpreted for his room to appear middle-class and have handmade blankets or furniture that has been passed down from family members. To achieve the worn effect on the paper, I would crumple paper multiple times before using it in different techniques to make the objects. This is also how I found that by crumpling the paper before adding water, increased the effectiveness of the glue within the copy paper. To symbolize Gregor’s character, I connected him with the story of Zacchaeus, a rich tax collector who climbed a tree so he could see Jesus over the crowd. The ladder represents Gregor as a salesman and how Jesus loves everyone even when society rejects them.