The Assembly

Johnny Nawracaj // Neither Flood Nor Fire, or, Both And

Prominent in this work is imagery of ubiquitous building materials whose production has a heavy impact on the environment- concrete and steel- taking the form of architectural elements evocative of economic inequity from two ends of the spectrum- degrading corrugated roofing panels and a decadent though crumbling neo-classical colonnade. This impossible concrete and steel structure floats in an abstract space comprised of colours and shapes that refer to a flooded plane and the sky in the midst of a forest fire. The wig- a notable queer/femme symbol- is present on this strange scene. Its conflation with this decaying structure invites consideration of structural vulnerability not only in the environmental and architectural space, but also on the social level. Alluding to environmental emergency, class disparity, and questions of belonging asked from the artist's subject position as a queer, nonbinary femme who has worked in construction to sustain themselves and their art practice, this piece is an open metaphor for precarity marking the very bones of the buildings and bodies we inhabit.