Shedding Skin #2 Vulnerability and Connection - Petja Ivanova

Shedding Skin & Meek Is The Warrior are work series around dismantling cultural narratives in support of patriarchy. The sculptures imitating armour wear are made of Chitosan-based wound healing bandages that solidify as bio-polymers (plastic). Chitin, the second most abundant bio-polymer after Cellulose can be found in the exoskeletons of insects and crustaceans. The exoskeletons that have inspired armour and robotics, are used in this case in their broken down form, when outgrown, when shed or broken, one new study shows that they can be fermented into Chitin and Chitosan. Medical innovations pick up on one of the oldest technologies, fermentation for wound grafting or intravenous drug delivery based on Chitosan. The title Shedding Skin refers to transformative processes, a metaphor for change and outgrowing old habits, urging society to revisit beliefs that need to be outgrown, such as the histories and definitions of technology, the social status of vulnerability and our interconnectedness with the environment and how much we need to rely on other species. The sculptures are inscribed with quotes about cultures of domination taken from bell hooks feminist publication on love ethics All About Love.