Une copine m’a parlé de Stéphanie Metz, il y a plusieurs mois déjà. Je suis retombé dessus car, comme chaque année, il fallait vraiment que je mette de l’ordre dans mes marque-pages. Et là, coincé entre deux vieux trucs stupides comme seul Internet est capable de leur offrir une tribune, j’ai retrouvé les oeuvres morbides de Stéphanie Metz. Cette artiste américaine met en scène une histoire naturelle des ours en peluche. Les crânes de ces nounours imaginaires sont évidemment en laine bouillie, et ça semble tout naturel.

Teddy bears at first appear trivial. They are toys—playthings for children and symbols of innocence, comfort, and nostalgia. But the teddy bear is also a metaphor for the way humans manipulate the natural world to our own ends. The teddy bear is an idea: a docile, cute, friendly invention far removed from the wild animal that inspired it. I create teddy bear anatomical specimens with a pretense of realness to emphasize the artifice of a familiar but unconsidered subject.

The anatomy of the teddy bear is wholly planned by its creator to appeal to the biological response of human adults to care for their cute, round-featured, helpless babies. The manufacture of teddy bears is a blueprint for bioengineering trends that are taking place today—without the biology.  But the sharp canine teeth in a teddy bear skull serve as a reminder that nature can only be tamed to a point. My teddy bear anatomical specimens hold a mirror to the collective human conceit that we can and should improve on and re-shape the natural world to suit our desires.

[Stephanie Metz]