ROUND 01: 2025
NATURE & NURTURE: though historically viewed as dueling keys to unlock our understanding of personhood; contemporary psychology has reconsidered them as dual necessities. The traditional approach of either/or – nature vs. nurture – fractures the whole of CARE: the generative element of nature + the sustaining power of nurture. The Nature/Nurture continuum cannot be divided into isolated binaries. Together they constitute the necessary and sufficient conditions of life itself; to exalt one over the other creates a false hierarchy and undermines the totality of the human experience.
The images in this series exploring the relationship between nature and nurture draw from my own experiences with the pervasive perception of a schism lurking between the two. We look to one or the other to account for the mysterious origins of psychopathy, success, abuse, health, temperament, and intelligence: which generates what?
Though separate images, the dark unknowable edges of the composition, experience, and genetic makeup bleed into each other creating cohesion: a whole. I am evoking a vision of idealized cooperation between the two, and a reminder that we are living observations of an ongoing conversation between the raw origin point of nature and the intervention of nurture. Whether we are seeking absolution or commendation for the roles we play; neither nature nor nurture–exclusively–are as important as we would like to believe.
NATURE/NURTURE, Round 01 (2025). Sixteen images of objects and concepts in both their natural and nurtured states were formatted into a DIY zine with a question accompanying each image on a detachable perforated pamphlet. The questions asked readers to consider the relationships between biology, autonomy, identity, and motherhood and prompted participants to reflect on collective stereotypes and assumptions regarding care and nurturance. Readers are encouraged to send me their responses to any/all of the questions asked to inform further iterations of the NATURE/NURTURE project. The questions included were selected from an ongoing list compiled over the past decade. I am continuing to print copies of the zine for distribution and awaiting responses.
If you would like to participate or receive a zine (free to caregivers, others: $5 suggested donation)
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