Meredith James '04 creates videos and sculptures that challenge perceptions

Artist Meredith James '04 shares three videos and additional photos of her work.

Meredith James created her 14 x 8 x 12-foot sculpture <i>Impossible House</i> with salvaged wood and windows.
A still photograph from the video <i>The Invention of Morel pages 89-91,</i> a composite of two videos that match shot for shot, one video of the room intact and another of the room as it is smashed. In the installation, the two videos would be projected simultaneously (with two different projectors) onto the same projection screen.
Another still from <i>The Invention of Morel pages 89-91.</i>
A third still from <i>The Invention of Morel pages 89-91.</i>
<i>Corridor,</i> a work from 2009, was created from dry-cleaning conveyors and vinyl. It is 15 x 10 x 7.5 feet in size.
<i>See Through Installation</i>
<i>A stand of roadside cholla against which small birds had been driven by the storm and there impaled</i> (2010)
<i>A stand of roadside cholla against which small birds had been driven by the storm and there impaled</i> (2010)
<i>See-Through</i> (8 x 7 x 9 feet) was created with salvaged wood and windows.
<i>Cuckoo 1 (Talking)</i> (2010)

The photographs above present additional images of work by artist Meredith James ’04, whose creations  “show parallels between the world you imagine in your mind and the world we inhabit,” according to a Montage article in the November-December 2011 issue of Harvard Magazine. Distorting architectural space and playing with perceptions, James’s videos are inspired by the works of Surrealists such as Jean Cocteau, as well as by literary science-fiction novels. Watch three of her videos below: Day Shift, Door Sculpture, and Present Time.

 

 

Day Shift:

Door Sculpture:

Present Time:

You might also like

Conan O’Brien Named Harvard’s 2026 Commencement Speaker

The comedian, host, and 1985 graduate will deliver remarks at the May 28 ceremony. 

Harvard’s Hasty Pudding Honors Rose Byrne

The Bridesmaids actress celebrated her 2026 Woman of the Year Award with a roast and a parade.

Harvard’s Hasty Pudding Toasts, Roasts Michael Keaton

The Batman actor was “encouraged as hell” by the students around him during the 2026 Man of the Year festivities.

Most popular

Martin Nowak Placed on Leave a Second Time

Further links to Jeffrey Epstein surface in newly released files

What Bonobos Teach Us About Female Power and Cooperation

A Harvard scientist expands our understanding of our closest living relatives.

The Teen Brain

It’s a paradoxical time of development. These are people with very sharp brains, but they’re not quite sure what to do with them...

Explore More From Current Issue

A diverse group of individuals standing on stage, wearing matching shirts and smiling.

How a Harvard and Lesley Group Broke Choir Singing Wide Open

Cambridge Common Voices draws on principles of universal design. 

A lively street scene at night with people in colorful costumes dancing joyfully.

Rabbi, Drag Queen, Film Star

Sabbath Queen, a new documentary, follows one man’s quest to make Judaism more expansive.

A woman in a black blazer holds a bottle of beer.

Introductions: Mallika Monteiro

A conversation with a beer industry executive