A Femur’s Folktale, 2025 & Biological Language, 2024

Old table leg, spun wool, three sound compositions, seven tumors. speakers, latex, silicone, ceramic gravel, medical table, red light.

wood leg 3.3’ x 6.5”, medical table 48” x 24” x 22”, tumors 3”x 4”

 A Femur’s Folktale is a found material that mirrors the sensation of my broken hip. After shattering my femur, I saw images of the injury but never truly connected with the MRIs. Then I found a broken table leg, cracked at the same angle as mine, and it gave me a physical expression of my injury. The rusted metal plate holding the split together became my leg. In Norse mythology, women would dig up the dead, and wrap bones in spun wool, wearing them like a medallion to bring good health. Here, I embrace my own version, wrapping the leg in wool I spun to bring my body good luck. Surrounding the femur are stereo-paired tumors, each with a set of speakers playing a sonic portrait of a tumor. If tumors had a sound, what would it be? Viewers are invited to pick up the tumors and hold them to their ears, listening.