About the Work

The idea for Identity Expression comes from Martha Dunham (front and center). She trained as a research scientist studying how animal behavior relates to the environment. The study of animal behavior today focuses on the individual. Martha's search for a universal symbol that represents the individual led her to the study of fingerprints. The process of creating a three-dimensional object from a two-dimensional print taken off a three-dimensional object gives these sculptures their form. Martha also studied linguistics, including learning to read Russian, Japanese, Arabic, Hebrew and German. Martha began making sculpture as she was writing her dissertation at Brown University, and has been creating art ever since.