Etienne Cipriani: The Cryptozoological Vivarium

The Cryptozoological Vivarium is the result of Professor Etienne Gisto Cipriani’s meticulous study and exploratory research within the field of speculative biology. Responding to this year’s Sunroom Project Space prompt to de-center humans and challenge speciesism—the discrimination against non-human animals— Cipriani renders the Sun Porch as a zoological environment inhabited by the artist’s definition of cryptid (n.), a species whose primary evolutionary specialization is the active deterrence and evasion of human detection, capture, and extinction.

Eight unique specimens, crafted from a range of materials and rendered to scale, are presented within a diorama constructed from natural materials gathered from the grounds of Wave Hill. Within this setting, each terrarium offers detailed information on the development, behavior, and environmental impact of its inhabitants to provide insight into their mysterious morphologies and elusive natures. Through analytical yet speculative data on the subjects under observation, the artist constructs a complex ecological perspective on evolution, celebrating cryptids as resilient life forms shaped by the threat of human presence.

Public Program: Meet the Artist Etienne Gisto Cipriani on Saturday, June 27, 1PM. In conversation with Wave Hill Curator of Visual Arts Rachel Raphaela Gugelberger, Cipriani will discuss his Sun Porch exhibition The Cryptozoological Vivarium, with a focus on how his work de-centers humans and challenges speciesism—the discrimination against non-human animals.