Film
Dust Catchers
by Miguel Ayala
Mail Art
Garfield Park
about the art
A place can be viewed from many angles—up close through a microscope, expansively from a clifftop, or anywhere in between. This month, artists Justin N. Kim and Miguel Ayala examine places and their interconnected relationships through a cartography of sound and sight.
Miguel's sound film, Dust Catchers, draws inspiration from his 60-mile commute between Los Angeles and the Inland Empire. Like a long, regular, drive, he composed a textural musical world by passing through the piece from beginning to end, over and over, building layers. The film’s imagery features dust from significant locations in Miguel's travels, the crystal-like patterns captured through a microscope and stop-motion-inspired animation.
Justin is also fascinated with space, but rather than an experience of moving through it, his art contemplates the interconnectedness of geographical spaces from a wide view. Justin explores how individual components form a whole by painting maps of familiar places, revealing the intersections and influences of human-made systems. His mail art, Garfield Park, reflects on the context of this public space, intimately connected to local streets and buildings, and a special place where he and his wife would often walk.
This art was made with support from the Eastside Arts Initiative