World (I & II)

World 1  was constructed out of many upcycled computer components. The choice of subject and materials were guided by the site, the university being a global place of learning where students come from around the world to learn. The piece is sited in the entrance lobby of the universities computer building. Bedfordshire University prides itself on its computer design and software courses so this materials and world map projection were chosen for the appropriateness of their content and context.

World 1  plays with topographical references, motherboards are maps made with arteries for information and electricity to travel through. The computer components are transformed into a sculpture that highlights the material's beauty. They are dissected, their innards exposed, revealing the underbelly of the machines we take for granted; an autopsy of our consumer society. Stockwell chooses these ‘commodity’ materials because they contain 'Stains of Existence' and act as ready-made signifiers, which she sculpts and interweaves in ways that delicately reveal their obscured politics and hidden beauty.

World No 1 was commissioned by Bedfordshire University in 2010.   

6m x 4.5m x 30cm (components supplied by Secure IT Recycling).

World  2  was commissioned by BlackRock Investments, courtesy of TAG Fine Arts 2012. It hangs in their New York Headquarters Boardroom. 

Made from discarded upcycled computer components, 3m x 1.5m x 13cm 

(materials supplied by Secure IT Recycling). 

Publications:

ENORMOUS WORLD MAP MADE FROM RECYCLED COMPUTERS BY SUSAN STOCKWELL Ego Alter-Ego

Susan Stockwell Creates a Recycled Masterpiece from E-waste Recycle Nation USA

Video:

Susan Stockwell - In the Public Space by Seraph for The University of Bedfordshire 2011

Collections:

World 1 is in the collection of  Buckinghamshire University, Luton, UK

World 2 is in the collection of Black Rock Investments, New York City, USA.