Slow + Steady

After first developing the concept of natural selection around 1835, Charles Darwin spent more than twenty years researching and collecting evidence that would support his theory. He was a meticulous man, overly concerned with the opinions of his fellow scientists and feared releasing his theory without absolute evidential support. If not for Alfred Russel Wallace, Darwin might have continued his research for another twenty years without publishing. Wallace was a world travelling naturalist and specimen-collector who hit upon a notion similar to Darwin's in 1855 and began spreading his theory around despite having little real evidence for it. The appearance of Wallace's theory spurred Darwin into action. He quickly condensed his evidence into a single volume and released On the Origin of Species in 1859. Rather than being upset by the scoop, Wallace bowed before Darwin's impeccable research. The two remained close associates for the remainder of their days. In fact, Wallace was a pall bearer at Darwin's funeral.

Transparent layers of cyan, magenta, yellow and black will be printed over one another to produce a full color print of Darwin. I'm supposed to be curating a show scheduled for January 2009 built around the theme of research. I need to find eleven people willing to participate and I haven't invited anyone yet.