Jake Couri

Jake Couri (b.1989) investigates the ecological impact of industrial processes and its relation to human consumption through the intermingling of raw and organic substances in his sculptural works. Designed to mimic the function of industrial cold plates, each wall-based work presents itself as a 'futuristic totem’. With compositions based on apparatuses used to collect mineral deposits and patterns found in microfluidics, each work emulates cellular functions of the human body through its complex form and material choice.

Couri focuses on the evolution of various materials including fabricated metal, raw materials such as magnesium and gelatin, and malleable materials like anodized aluminum, to convey a story of the industries that mine our identities. The addition of silicone poured into empty channels conveys our shapeshifting nature, adapting by any means for the sake of survival. These materials are juxtaposed against organic substances such as blue spirulina, kelp, mulberry powder, ashwagandha root, decapsulated brine shrimp eggs, and green lipped mussels, for example, through Couri's meticulous construction techniques. The sculptures both reveal and explore the facets of mining and manufacturing by highlighting the complicated genesis of organic source materials in our contemporary world.