Annika Ekrem
ΓИ
This piece (“Loon, Inverted”) explores and challenges the notion of a single perspective. While most humans are able to perceive approximately one million colors, other species such as birds have the ability to see beyond what we can, most notably into the UV portion of the spectrum. I made this piece with the intention of taking something ordinary and subverting it. Inverting the colors of the common loon and exaggerating their saturation leads to a very different, almost shockingly vibrant version of the bird, perhaps not unlike how loons might see themselves. Much as NASA uses various filters of light we cannot see in order to detect the undetectable, we can shift our perspective to look at things under a metaphorical different light, which in turn can show us things we never imagined we could see.
Student Arts Program official selection 2023. Located on the first floor, near The Connection.
About the Artist
Annika Ekrem is a senior at CU Boulder majoring in chemistry and pursuing independent research in molecular biophysics at JILA. Since her childhood, her fascination with colors, geometry and spectral phenomena has served as a driving force in her exploration of how these elements make up our world – an idea that serves as the foundation of her work as a chemist, her research and her passion for visual art.