Hannen Wolfe. Juried Artist
Constellations
The Loft at QUT Kelvin Grove
Artist Statement
“Paper Bark” is a virtual reality experience about deterioration, decolonization, and regeneration. It uses generative algorithms, photogrammetric reconstruction, and image style transfer to reconstruct the past, show the present and suggest possible futures. Historically pulp and paper mills were the driving force of economic prosperity for many towns in the state of Maine with the industry peaking in 1967. Due to outside firms maximizing short term profits, the industry collapsed in the 1990s leaving mill towns impoverished. “Paper Bark” focuses on the remains of a 130-year-old mill in Winslow, Maine that closed in 1997, and its past, present and potential futures. The mill is situated in the homeland of the Kennebis people who were displaced during the Indian Wars and sought refuge in other Wabanaki nations. The name of the artwork is derived from the production of paper at the mill and the bark of paper birches, a native plant material used for making canoes, baskets and other goods. “Paper Bark” embodies the ecologies of place and shifting temporalities through a virtual reality, non-linear narrative about colonization, collapse and the potential future regeneration of a paper mill town.
About the artists
Hannen Wolfe is a media artist and Assistant Professor of Computer Science at Colby College. Their research is at the intersection of art and computation, building interactive art installations and staging robot performances that uplift underrepresented voices, question how we use technology, and dismantle systemic and structural inequalities. Their work has been shown at SIGGRAPH Art Gallery winning “Best in Show”, the International Symposium on Electronic Art, NIME, CHI Interactivity, IEEE VIS Art Program, Contemporary Istanbul and others. Their research has been published in Leonardo and IEEE Transactions on Affective Computing. They earned a PhD in Media Arts and Technology and a M.S. in Computer Science from the University of California, Santa Barbara.
Credits: Hannen Wolfe