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Joseph Kohnke
Marked
September 7 - October 21 2006
"After a good friend died from melanoma, I was suddenly drawn to every skin imperfection on my body. The idea that something so small and overlooked on the skin could possibly consume your entire body both frightened and intrigued me. In nature, markings and spots on the body's surface are used to increase the chances of survival, whereas on humans they are looked upon as flaws or the markings of death. "Marked" is a mechanism that continuously searches images taken off the body. The skin images have been pierced in areas that could possibly be seen as a flaw or as a life threatening mark. As these voids of imperfections are found within the image, the patterns are then transferred onto two contrasting forms within the space."
Joseph Kohnke was born in Monterey, California in 1973 and now works and lives in Chicago, Illinois. He received his BFA with an emphasis in sculpture from San Jose State University in California and his MFA with an emphasis in art and technology from The School of The Art Institute of Chicago in Illinois. He currently supervises the materials lab and teaches a two-part fundamentals course for the Architecture Department at the Illinois Institute of Technology, while also actively producing and exhibiting art.
Clicking this link will launch video of Joseph Kohnke's exhibtion "Marked". A high-speed connection is required.