Tensile: A Sublime Love Story
Loading...
Description
Tensile: A Sublime Love Story weaves together a 19th century poem of seduction by Percy Bysshe Shelley, with current research on bisphenol contamination in our environment and bodies gathered by biologist Alyce DeMarais. Used to manufacture plastics and resins for food and drink packaging, bisphenol impacts the endocrine system, impairing development and reproductive health with transgenerational effects. 19th century writers didn’t know synthetic plastic would emerge in 1907 to change the world. In the midst of industrialization, Romantic era poets reinvigorated a spiritual connection to nature by portraying the Sublime. Shelley’s “Love’s Philosophy” celebrates the mingling of rivers and oceans as scientists conclude that exposure to bisphenol contamination is ubiquitous. Illustrations were printed directly from single-use plastics (including bread-bag ties, milk bottle caps, drinking straws and contact lens containers) to create sublime landscapes, and explore the irony of our love affair with this monster of our own creation.
Publisher
Springtide Press
Subject
environment, environmentalism, conservation, plastic, chemicals
Extent
6 x 8” expands to 60 inches.
Style
Leporello structure with pop-up text panels and plastic covers, in a plastic box,
Material
Single-use plastic, plastic covers
Technique
Letterpress. Bound by Gabby Cooksey.
Date
2021
Recommended Citation
Spring, Jessica, "Tensile: A Sublime Love Story" (2021). Rollins College Book Arts Collection. 58.
https://scholarship.rollins.edu/book_arts/58
Other Information
Edition 31 of 35. Signed by the artist. For more information, visit https://springtidepress.com/portfolio.