Enclosed

OpenAIR Montana at Flathead Lake Biological Station of the University of Montana, Polson MT, 2019

Locally-sourced tannic dye, Flathead Lake water, latex paint, acrylic paint, Chinese Ink, graphite, conte, colored pencil, glaze pencil, thread, and chemically-synthesized upconverting nanoparticle on yupo paper. 20” x 40”

In collaboration with Cody Youngbull and Excelsior Nanotech Corporation of the FLBS SensorSpace

Because plankton are so small in comparison to the size of the water molecules, their movement might feel to us like swimming through molasses. The viscous and vivid red and nonabsorbent surface of the yupo paper, which is made of polypropylene, attempt to evoke this foreign experience of water. Small white lines depict two of the lake-wide free-oscillation seiche modes (closed currents researched by Mark Lorang), and are painted with an upconverting nanoparticle, Sodium Yttrium Fluoride (NaYF4). The crystalline structure of the nanoparticle is able to temporarily store photons of non-visible wavelengths of light and emit them as visible light, a process used mostly in cell imaging and anti-counterfeit measures for currency. By shining an infrared laser at the piece, snippets of seiche data can be illuminated, pointing to the impossibility of generating a complete and accurate picture of the constantly oscillating motion of the lake.

Here is an image of the infrared laser interacting with upconverting paint:

Read about my Open AIR artist residency experience here: https://www.openairmt.org/artist-interviews/anneyoncha

See process images and photos of life on Flathead Lake here: