Special Installation | Forest Feels
by Amanda N. Simons
A response to the exhibition Reforestation of the Imagination by Ginny Ruffner, Forest Feels invites its viewers to participate in two distinct realities of an art museum experience: to observe the work as it is in this moment, and also to change the work by contributing to its evolution. There are many ways to participate in this piece! Please interact in a way that feels right to you. Rearrange the components, create a plant (real or imagined), add on, take away, or just stay awhile and enjoy some sensations.
About the Artist:
Amanda N. Simons (b. 1984, Flint Michigan, USA) is a visual artist, writer, educator, and safety advocate whose interdisciplinary art practice currently explores the intersections of queer identity, and experience-based learning. This visual art practice takes the form of many things — painting, print, small scale sculpture, performance, and video — and often features an interactive component or direct reference to the body — how we are taught to act or live or move, and what happens when we push against that?
Amanda holds dual degrees in English (BA) and painting (BFA) from the University of Michigan Flint, as well as dual advanced degrees in interdisciplinary studio art (MFA) and visual and critical studies (MA) from California College of the Arts, and works as the Program Coordinator of the SkillSet Program at the UNCA STEAM Studio.
