Mark Dion was born in New Bedford, Massachusetts in 1961....

Mark Dion was born in New Bedford, Massachusetts in 1961. He studied and received a BFA in 1968 and an honorary doctorate in 2003 from the University of Hartford, School of Art, Connecticut. He also studied at the School of Visual Arts in New York from 1982 to 1984. He is known for his incorporation of biology, ethnography, and the history of science into his artwork. He travels the world and works with a wide range of scientists, museums, and other artists to excavate ancient artifacts and the banks of the Thames River. His artwork explores the ways in which popular ideas and social constructs shape the human understanding of the natural world, history, and knowledge. He incorporates archaeological and other scientific methods into his†¦show more content†¦My piece is titled â€Å"Luck† and my cabinet includes all different types of lucky charms from around the world, things that are culturally considered lucky, or that I consider lucky. Each piece has a memory attac hed to it of a certain place, culture, or event, and each piece represents luck in some way or is considered lucky by the culture it comes from. Each of the pieces I hold dear since they all have stories attached to them, things only I would know. I gathered each piece along my travels through the world and decided I wanted to incorporate them into a single piece. They all look odd together, but understanding the overall theme of luck connects them. The original cabinets of curiosities were formed to showcase unusual or interesting objects, especially those things that related artificial with the natural. People began collecting these unusual things and showcasing them together, trying to piece together what the relationships between each thing were and why they were important. Often the most fantastic things were collected and showcased from far off lands. These objects better helped people understand cultures and peoples from around the world. Each piece was unusual and unexpected, which why it blurred the lines of art and science. The idea of the fantastic played a role in my own piece, as luck is not a scientific principle and more of a socially constructed idea mixed with wishful and hopeful thinking. It seems