Creative pair Aleia Murawski and Sam Copeland have come together to create detailed miniature landscapes that feature various snails as their occupants.
The minuscule landscapes are laced with the often clinical nature of everyday living, featuring plastic coated furniture, perfectly manicured lawns and bland office spaces.
Aleia Murawski and Sam Copeland’s elaborate miniature sets reflect a nostalgic representation of middle-class suburban America and the dark themes of rampant commercialism.
Murawski mentions that the series was supposedly inspired by stereotypical American TV Dramas and films, highlighting white picket fences, flat screen televisions, and tiny bubble baths and burnt out cigarettes.
“I love making rooms that feel nostalgic, romantic or banal, but also have something foreboding or off-putting about them”.
The final product relies heavily on the harsh lighting, dark themes of mundanity and the materialism that seems to pervade all aspects of human existence.
The end result being a surreal yet confronting representation of everyday life and the overall human condition in a westernised context.
The scenes have such a fine attention to detail that without the slimy actors you’d believe they were real. The duo supposedly recreate the scenes as a non-confrontational means of reflection.
“There is a pleasure in being able to see into a space that’s not your own. Miniatures allow us to look closely and survey a private space in detail. They re-present something back to us in a non-confrontational way”.
Aleia supposedly chose the loveable molluscs as the sets subjects as a result of the unique way they interact with the human environments.
“I like to think of snails as tiny puppies with shells. I love seeing how they will interact with a set. We put cucumber juice on certain objects, but we cannot wield a snail to do something. We make a scene and hope they are interested in what is around them.”
The playful reflection of the environments provides an interesting, thought provoking spin on everyday life and allows us to look deeper into the world we thoughtlessly exist in.
Via It’s Nice That.
