Inspired by the lush tangle of plant life that envelops Glyndor House during the warmer months, Joanne Howard has created a stop-motion animation projection that features a network of rapidly growing vines. Based partly on decorative motifs used in botanical wallpaper, the animation of the drawing begins slowly, tracing a series of intricate patterns. As the momentum builds, the drawing explodes out of its initial precision into a frenzy of dense, freeform gesture. This play between the formality of repetition and pattern and the chaotic imagery of nature reveals humanity’s consuming and ultimately futile desire to create order in the persistent entropy of the natural world.

This is Howard’s first use of video projection. Her background working with more traditional media, such as pencil and watercolor, comes through in the delicate lines of the drawing itself. Projecting the image onto the wall allows the animation to activate its surroundings, drawing attention to the work’s location in the Sunroom and amplifying its exploration of the complex relationship between interior and exterior shots.