Loïe et Gab: a love letter to my queer ancestors

2023

American White Ash, Ash-Veneered Plywood, Mirror, Steel, Mother of Pearl

53.15" L x 10" W x 21.25" H

 

Floating tambour cabinet with mirror. 

 

This piece pays homage to Belle Epoque-era lesbian power-couple Loïe Fuller, a pioneer of modern dance, and Gab Sorère, a mechanical innovator. The movement of the tambours is inspired by Fuller’s famed "Serpentine Dance". The sliding tambour doors are external to the cabinet, riding along a steel track. Each tambour was cut and kept in order to maintain the grain pattern, then individually water-stained to create the seamless color gradient. 

 

With a mirrored “full moon” as the centerpiece, the closed tambours set the scene of a moon rising at dusk. The tambours open to reveal a mother of pearl night sky complete with constellations, honoring the telescopic celestial images Sorère would project upon Fuller while she danced. 

 

Together, the tambours slide across the mirror, displaying different phases of the moon.

 

From the series "Queeries"