Super Natural

Foreboding yet beautiful, Travis K. Schwab’s "Super Natural" is a dark vision of the future (or the lack thereof). A reflective crumpled piece of consumer plastic wraps around a plant set against a backdrop of an enchanting pink and blue sky. The plastic interrupts this otherwise peaceful scene and engulfs the vegetation like humanities plastic waste consumes the planet; squeezing the life out of it like a boa constrictor. Even the expanse of magnificent sky is not without dreadful implications. As a New Yorker, pollution is one of the first things I think about when watching a majestic sunset. New York’s famous kaleidoscopic sunsets are created by the fumes of New Jersey waste processing plants, which release poisonous fumes that damage the environment and beautify the setting sun’s rays. This marriage of beauty and destruction is amplified by Schwab’s choice of plastic. Instead of choosing an ugly white plastic bag, he paints a festive balloon that reflects and refracts the natural splendor it destroys.