About

Modern Dowry

The teapot is an iconic object which bridges the two seemingly disparate disciplines of computer graphics and silversmithing. Modern Dowry is a silver teapot was created with a design workflow, which further connects the two disciplines by utilizing both digital and traditional design and fabrication techniques. 

I begin with meaningful data to create two-dimensional drawings which are lofted into three-dimensional forms, additional details such as the handle, lid, and spout, are designed to work within the constraints provided by the data inspired form. The statistical data spreadsheet drives the drawing by way of a script written for me by Susan Reiser, which plots the figures in a designated overlapping layout. This drawing is future manipulated by hand and vector-editing software. The final drawings is a closed curve which is imported to a three-dimensional modeling application and the 3D form is explored and modeled. The footprint remains true to the preset design constraints of the data, but the 3D form is designed with function and aesthetic constraints in mind. 

Modern Dowry was created for an invitational exhibition at the Museum of the City of New York titled  “New York Silver: Then and Now.” The curator’s charge was for the artists to take inspiration directly from the Museum’s collection of Colonial Silver. I was inspired by the history of silver objects holding the wealth of the family directly. Silver platters, porringers, and vessels were presented to a bride upon her marriage from her family, as a dowry of sorts. In comparing these stories to my personal financial situation, and the contrast of entering my marriage with a significant sum of student loan debt and joining that to my husbands, I created this teapot utilizing the figures of my debts and assets as represented in the convex and concave curves that make up the teapot footprint. 

The materials used in the fabrication of the form are also deeply significant to the concept of the piece. The form was produced by selective laser sintering of nylon and plated with sterling silver. The outside appearance of the teapot gives the illusion of wealth as the sterling silver holds inherent value. The nylon core of the teapot reduces the overall worth as plastic is seen as a disposable commodity in our culture. These materials parallel our ability to purchase many objects such as phones, cars, clothes, and even homes,  that create an illusion of wealth on credit.