anna burns + michael bodiam craft silent but violent mushroom clouds

anna burns + michael bodiam craft silent but violent mushroom clouds
all images courtesy of anna burns michael bodiam

the morbid, media-induced attraction to such themes of warfare and weaponry has perpetuated the question, ‘are we hungry, enthralled or just anesthetized?’, probed by london-based creative studio anna burns and photographer michael bodiam in collaborative photographic series. ‘modern warfare is clearly no joke‘ the artists describe ‘but rampant self-perpetuating thirst for gore and mass-destruction still runs rife among the mass media and begs plenty of questions about our appetite for the mystery and mayhem of modern combat.’

the mushroom cloud symbol rendered from carved fruit

‘silent but violent’ takes on the grotesque imagery that remains one of the most vivid visual icons of war: the mushroom cloud. burns and bodiam have created intricately hand-crafted versions of this symbol, formed from quotidian, playful objects such as vibrantly-colored flowers, balloons and fruit. layers of interwoven roses and a delicately carved watermelon render the giant cloud in a domestic form, ‘something usually so untouchable, this dark delight in the wildernesses of devastation finds creation in catastrophe.’

a mass of white balloons forms the billowing smoke cloud

marbles make up the image of warfare

a sewn tapestry adds color to the otherwise dreaded symbol of catastrophe