Gaunt’s artwork is inspired by natural history. She collects natural specimens as objects and  observations of nature as memories and use both to explore ideas in the studio. In the past two years, this has expanded to include collecting community stories about how folks connect and relate to the nonhuman world. She finds their words to inspiring her to create new and evolving collaborative pieces.

Artist Statement

Working with a variety of materials, I make two- and three-dimensional works that provide an interactive experience. The pieces are displayed as a coherent assembly of repeated forms designed to encourage the viewer to move in for a closer look at the details. In the work, I search for ways to impose unexpected connections between human and animal, blurring the lines between the observer and the observed: The human figure is pinned in a specimen drawer; human organs are collaged with insect anatomy; human and animal details are inventoried on toe tags. The entanglement can disrupt what is known and therefore open a door to reflection.

In addition to working more with community, I have been taking steps to transition to more sustainably in my practice. You can see this shift in action with a few of the pieces in (Re)Collect. When adding new components, I have strived to use and reuse materials already present in the studio, whether it is old artwork being transformed into new pieces, or tangled threads that become part of the subject. I have also begun to make my own paper from leftover supplies and scraps and have turned the results into tags and seeds.