Artist Statement:
12 Exact Differences is a series of twelve photographs of leaves from the same red maple tree. The leaves were collected on a single day during the fall. Each leaf was then hand-typed with DNA that codes for an enzyme involved in the Calvin Cycle (the principle mechanism that makes photosynthesis possible). Similar to the Nine Leaves Separated by Nothing series, this series invites the viewer to consider the individuality of each leaf despite sharing the same genome. The intent is to confound the frequent cultural assumption that genes are an absolute representation of an organism, explaining all variability seen in nature. The overlay of genetic code onto the physical structure of the leaf also comments on how our holistic perception of nature is being remapped to see life as an assemblage of parts or data rather than an autonomous physical identity that is larger than the sum of its parts.