Tundra’s Fur Series 1 is part of a multidisciplinary project that interweaves photography, video and fibre art. The project revolves around my dog Tundra (2003-2019) whose fur I collected for years with the intention of one day spinning it into dog wool (chiengora). Over the past 4 years the fur has been the subject of my art in what is a commemorative process that touches on presence, absence, mourning and recuperation.

At present one video work and 10 distinct photographic series have evolved from the project as I explore the fur in different ways with the ultimate intention of transforming it into a fibre work that has lasting significance for me. The project involves the physical transformation of the fur into wool as well as documentary and poetic interventions rooted in the process of photographing and filming the momentary things I see and create with his fur.

Tundra’s Fur Series 1 was created a few months after he died. To cope with his death, I spent days fastidiously washing, drying, arranging and photographing his beautiful fur. This undertaking allowed me to reflect on how as humans we deal with the loss of loved ones. And how by cherishing, preserving and ennobling their last remnants and belongings we attempt to fill the void created by their absence.