The Artist: Yael Kanarek
I was thinking, What would it look like to put source code in a body? There’s a whole discourse that reviews the connection between language and reality, and here you have code that actually executes. We think of language as virtual, but our body is the hardware for it.
The Work: Spin_Lock (2004)
Sheer organza ribbon hand-ironed with a portion of the Linux kernel code. Sold for $9,500 by Steven Sacks at bitforms gallery, 529 West 20th Street, near Eleventh Avenue, second floor. (On exhibit at Deborah Colton Gallery in Houston through November 30.)
The Collector: Jonathon Carroll
I don’t know how I’m going to display it yet. But the first thing for me is always the sensation you get looking at a work. Sculptures are often hard-edged and heavy, and this is completely the antithesis—it reminds me of women’s hair. It makes you want to go up and touch it. Then, as you get closer, you can start reading the code.