Artist Statement:
Many people have expressed growing concern about the state of the environment and climate change. There are a lot of questions to be answered: How will we meet our carbon reduction goals? What are the yet unforeseen effects of climate change? Will there be an apocalypse? Will you survive?
Scientists are making great efforts to answer these questions, but have they tried the supernatural? Throughout history, uncertain times have lead people to seek answers from less scientific sources. Seers, divinators, fortunetellers, all have provided insight when rational thought fails us. My Waste Land art piece harnesses the power of the paranormal to answer these pressing questions. I will create a booth for contacting the other side via a collection of particularly powerful discarded items of waste. I will then attempt to perform divination by reading the waste (like tea leaves) to provide answers in these uncertain times.
Artist Bio:
Duncan Ferguson is an artist, writer, and photographer based out of Victoria, BC. He holds a BFA from NSCAD University where he majored in painting and sculpture, and frequently makes art about seeking happiness. This has taken the form of painting hidden messages in scenes from the wheel of fortune or using a magnifying glass to burn drawings into canvas. Many of his works use a combination of absurdity and divination to seek guidance in the wrong places.