For centuries, people have trawled the earth plundering cultural relics from sacred sites, appropriating them for the benefit of others.
Anousha Payne is an entirely different kind of treasure hunter. She makes ‘imagined artefacts’ – digital creations rendered in physical form – that explore ideas of ownership, identity and representation in the modern age.
Using 3D scanning and printing, the 26-year-old London artist makes semi-abstracted forms that feel both familiar and new – carving out a niche between ancient materials and modern technology.
“I was thinking about whether an object still has spiritual qualities when it’s replicated,” she says. “Is it still the same thing when I’ve imagined it huge and in another material?”
To find out, Anousha crafts ornaments that could have existed in another world, then has them blown-up in size by a 3D printer at MyMini Factory.
When you create a handmade object, she explains, you don’t always know what form it will ultimately take. With a 3D-printed object, however, every step is an exact science.
That gives her work the feeling of a collaboration between human and machine. But it also poses some pretty questions in the mind of the viewer.
These creations upend the traditional dynamic of cultural appropriation. They inspire you to reconsider how sacred objects change when they’re taken from their intended context, what they represent and who really ‘owns’ them to begin with.
You can even print out your own version of Anousha’s imagined artefacts – putting a DIY stamp on a project that’s all about cultural empowerment.
Watch part 1 and part 2 of Heightened Senses.
Canvas is a channel funded by the Arts Council dedicated to inspire young people through the arts. Find out more.
Enjoyed this article? Like Huck on Facebook or follow us on Twitter.
Latest on Huck
The fight to save Bristol’s radical heart
As the city’s Turbo Island comes under threat activists and community members are rallying round to try and stop the tide of gentrification.
Written by: Ruby Conway
Gaza Sunbirds: The Palestinian para-cycling team racing against the odds to compete internationally
From genocide in Gaza to the World Championships: What next for Palestine’s first para-cycling team?
Written by: Alex King
We are young trans people occupying Wes Streeting’s office
Following the Health Secretary’s decision to permanently ban puberty blockers for young Trans people, activists from Trans Kids Deserve Better have occupied the space outside his constituency office writes Grin.
Written by: Grin, Trans Kids Deserve Better
Have capitalists killed the internet?
At the start of the century, the internet was an escape from reality. Now, reality is an escape from the internet writes Huck Newsletter columnist Emma Garland.
Written by: Emma Garland
Why I’m taking action for rent control
On Saturday 14th December, people from across London will march to demand action on skyrocketing rents explains London Renters Union member Elyem Chej.
Written by: Elyem Chej
A portrait of love and loss in America today
‘Still Life: Photographs & Love Stories’ (Anthology Editions) is an intimate visual memoir of family, kinship, and community.
Written by: Miss Rosen