Normally I would not explain my art. I appreciate the 7% of the population that stops to investigate my work. But as I know some brilliant profs with curious students, I am sending this unnecessary explanation of Rendering for use as a teaching tool.
Although acute self-awareness can be alternately astonishing or abysmal at any given moment, the latter suffocated me during the Covid quagmire summer of 2020.
My colleague blossomed during the crisis. She found errors in her education and decided to re-write the wrongs she learned in a humble way. Technology unfolded easily in front of her and the rich tapestry of gender and cultures that were previously cursory, now were an easy and obvious roadmap. And she made public her revelations, motivations, and consequent transformations!
Her Herculean leap left me stunned. But I was also paralyzed by the new pedagogy and tech. And I could not make art for it would have been tainted due to the badness I was assigned. I did, however, find salvation in rescue horses who had known nothing but tragedy. Perspective in place, I reached out to the woman who inspired me.
And then she accidently corrupted my initial vision with a deft combination of good listening skills and thoughtful input. After a few false starts (due to her brilliant contamination — akin to a green patina on a bronze statue), footage was shot, and then more footage was shot and then stills were shot until finally I could clarify and edit back down to my original intentions.
The term Rendering is, of course, a play on words. To render is to process – which I depicted our movement (or lack of) in two directions. To render an animal, however, is to process it for useful materials once deceased. Dying horses are often sent to the 'Renderers.'
Ultimately what was rendered was a film. Thank you, Ashley.
Symbolism considered:
Note: no horses are destined for any sort of rendering from the horse rescue where this was filmed. Far from it, providing my summer salvation, Michelle Zrubek's equine extension of Cassie's Place saves more lives than she will ever know.