Emory Marks (she/her) is an interdisciplinary American artist living at the intersections of gallery art and technology. She is currently studying at the School of the Art Institute of Chicago, focusing on robotic sculpture. When not in the studio, you will probably find her out on the streets of Chicago, with an iced coffee in one hand and a camera in the other, people watching.
My interactive robotic sculptures create a performance using sculpture and circuits to investigate why our society relies on unwritten social rules to function.
I am inspired by my twin sister, Maya. Maya is autistic. A few years ago when talking about unwritten
social rules with her, it occurred to me that I don't know why humans follow unwritten social
rules without consciously thinking about them.
I create my work by combining found objects, usually thrown away tech and digital fabrication to create a sustainable and interesting creature.
My most recent piece is a good example of this. It is a blackberry that I affectionately call Steve. Steve has two eyes projected onto it. Using a webcam to track a participant's presence, the eyes then follow the person in every direction when the person moves. Most of the people thought of this as creepy, but it reinforces my question, why are certain social rules necessary?