Carrie Mae Weems

The Jefferson Suites, 1999

digital photographs on muslin, audio component, dimensions variable
(detail)
Courtesy of P.P.O.W.

I find the interlock and interdependence amongst Science (Industry), Commerce (Celera), and the Government (the Department of Energy) fascinating. Iím almost certain that my fascination stems from my own naivetÈ. For instance, I believed science to be a neutral agency with truth as its ultimate goal, completely overlooking the simple fact that science involved scientists, i.e. men and women who act as a cross between God and Houdini. Iím a slow girl, so the signficance of and the particularity of these three bedfellows continue to baffle me. Of course, in some small way, I understand the roll in the hay between the science industry and commerce, but a mÈnage a trois involving the Department of EnergyÖwell, itís all just above my head. The Jefferson Suites was an attempt to sort out and make sense of the perplexing issues raised by the introduction of biotechnology and the mapping of the human genome.