“Bottoms Up” is a provocative scanography work that turns prescription medication bottles into an evocative exploration of perspective, recovery, and transformation.
Using a flatbed scanner as its medium, the piece captures the often-overlooked underside of these everyday objects, casting light on their bases with a subtle, almost clinical precision. Each bottle’s bottom becomes a surreal array of patterns, colors, and textures, forming a delicate but powerful visual symphony. The labels, logos, and forms are all revealed in intimate detail, giving them a tactile, almost visceral presence.
The visual metaphor in “Bottoms Up” is unmissable — a defiant act of ascent. By presenting the bottles from beneath, the work echoes the journey of healing and self-reclamation. The upward gaze suggests the arduous rise from the depths of struggle, as medication acts as both catalyst and companion in navigating the path to well-being. The varying designs of the bottle bottoms symbolize the multiplicity of experiences people endure in their pursuit of health — a reflection of the deeply personal nature of recovery.
There’s a profound interplay of order and chaos in the composition, a visual tension that mirrors the unpredictable rhythms of treatment. The overlapping circles and fragmented patterns pull the viewer’s gaze upward, creating a sense of upward movement, of struggle yielding to progress. The scanographic technique itself adds another layer of intimacy — it feels as though the viewer could almost touch the bottle bases, absorbing their subtle textures, as if embodying the process of healing itself.
Ultimately, “Bottoms Up” is a portrait of resilience, an aesthetic meditation on the power of recovery and hope. In transforming mundane objects into a meditation on struggle and triumph, the work reminds us of the untapped beauty in everyday life and the hidden potential in the simplest of forms. This piece forces us to reconsider the objects that shape our lives, imbuing them with renewed significance as symbols of personal transformation.