Helena Kauppila

Humans on the Beach (ARHGAP11B)

My Origin Stories series reflects on the structure and interconnectedness of life. The same four nucleobases form the DNA of all life on Earth, yet within this shared structure an extraordinary diversity of life is possible.

Humans on the Beach (ARHGAP11B) returns to a memory of looking down from a cliff in California onto a beach full of people. The shimmering colors come from the beachwear and the scene itself: many different individuals, yet all recognizably human. This is my third painted interpretation of that memory, each time returning to the joy and energy of the people gathered there.

Instead of depicting the people, I finger-painted the coding sequence of ARHGAP11B, a human-specific gene, across the surface, almost like drawing in sand. The wet-on-wet technique required the painting to be completed in one go, so the physical act itself involved a great deal of preparation. The genetic sequence provides a fixed structure, while the act of painting introduces movement, intuition, and variation.

Interested in "Humans on the Beach (ARHGAP11B)"? Inquire below.

Getting it home

Pick up the painting from Zeitgeist at the end of the exhibition, or have it shipped to you. I’m happy to provide a shipping quote.