The first phase of Secondary Occupants was a project called To Know the Spiders. The project is a visual 
exploration of the animals that occupy the peripheries of architectural space. The process began with the 
collection and killing of a spider. The specimen was assigned a number and stored in a glass vial. I then 
studied its face under a microscope and from the resulting drawings created a portrait of the spider in the 
form of a fabric banner. The banner was then placed and photographed in the exact spot of collection. 
The banner illuminates the presence of a silent witness and sometime symbiotic partner while also serving 
as an ironic memorial to the spider that had to die for that understanding to be gained.