What Moves Us

Commissioned through Oregon’s Percent for Art in Public Places Program and installed in OSU-Cascades’ Edward J. Ray Hall, What Moves Us brings together individuals from the OSU-Cascades community and familiar imagery associated with the visual language of STEAM to embody the transformational power of integrated learning.

The radiant central figures symbolize our evolving intelligence. Their forms are inspired by the scientific study of anatomy and the accompanying anatomical illustrations that shaped our understanding of the human body and cultivated an awareness of the self. The three floating figures also reference contemporary science fiction’s representations of cyborgs and automatons, allowing us to imagine new forms while challenging archaic ways of seeing.

Ten circular portraits orbit each of the figures. From afar the work has a cosmic presence, but upon closer inspection the portraits become slides, depicting human faces through swirls of ink that resemble organisms and geologic features seen through a microscope. Intended to be viewed on both the macro and micro level, What Moves Us celebrates scientific inquiry as an evolving process centered on humanity’s curiosity and compassion.

What Moves Us, OSU-Cascades’ Edward J. Ray Hall, Dura-Lar, black ink, gold ink, gold leaf, paint marker, and acrylic, 2021, 14 x 25 ft