Kat Bawden

Iosis — a semi-permanent installation in the Mill at Vicksburg as part of Prairie Ronde Artist Residency 🟥

I spent seven weeks working in this historic paper mill, which is currently being rebuilt from an abandoned post-industrial site. I was inspired by the mill as a site of constant transformation. I was drawn to this room on the top floor, with windows that face both due east and due west. I found two dead birds in it. Being in the room felt like being inside a sundial. I wondered how I could transform this space using this changing light.

I was reading a lot about alchemy symbolism — moving from darkness into light. Iosis is the Greek word for the final stage in alchemy and is associated with the color red, symbolizing enlightenment, healing, and reemergence from spiritual death.

The color red has profound effects on our bodies. It stimulates our heartbeat and respiration, but can also be soothing. I wanted to create this experience of both activating the body and soothing it, inviting an awareness of one’s body as a site of constant change and transformation, as well.

This was the first time I made something I couldn’t take with me. It is also the last thing I made before I got sick with Lyme disease. This work was extremely physically demanding. I deep-cleaned and collaged each window in layers of cellophane by hand, in 80-95 degree heat, for weeks. I loved every minute of it.

I am eternally grateful to @prairierondeartistresidency @johnkern1 and co-resident @connerdarling for the opportunity, support, and encouragement 🫂