When the Oklahoma Land Run closed the western frontier in 1889, the doctrine of manifest destiny transformed from an ideology tied to physical space into a dominant mythology of American identity. Today we can understand the relationship between climate change and private space programs through this lens, as an extension of a “supernaturally–mandated” capitalist expansion. This narrative underpins the work, which also references the cinematic Western. Vortex was created for the 57th Ann Arbor Film Festival, featuring an interactive dystopic Ann Arbor. It's a sculpture set on the technological frontier of VR gaming.