Celebration of Nature [Metals]

Artist Statement Celebration of Nature Nature surrounds us and needs to be cherished. It is honest and brutal, but it is where I find solace, so it is no surprise that most of my work encompasses a nature theme. I originally studied biology to be a zoologist, however, I figure there is no reason why art can’t be incorporated into this field. I always have had a special place in my heart for the animals that we overlook, many of which we find unappealing, such as snakes, lizards, spiders and so on. There is beauty in all animals, be it in their aesthetics or in their adaptations, and I want to make this visible. Deep sea marine fish fascinate me. How can their swim bladder withstand depth and pressure over 100x our atmosphere? How can they live a mile down? How do parasitic males work? How do they have a symbiotic relationship with bioluminescent bacteria? The marine hatchet fish and the amalgam fish I made comprising elements from the black dragon fish as well as your standard silver hake are attempts to make the terrifying beautiful and wearable. These two broaches were made from what was originally a flat sheet of copper, then through chasing and making repousse in a pitch pot and doing a bezel stone set, you can make a sheet of copper come to life and become a broach. The lizard necklace was inspired by a love I had for looking for small lizards, amphibians, and other animals through the underbrush in the woods. I would go out with a field guide and a small terrarium and catch five lined skinks, broad headed skinks, and red back salamanders and bring them home for a few days watching how they move, how they eat and take notes. I realize now that this was maybe not the most ethical thing to do, however, since then times got hard, stress got near too much to handle, so I remember what made me happy, running through the woods looking for little creatures. I turned this idea into a necklace to keep it near to me. My large ceramic lizard on sandstone was made as a celebration of the southwestern United States. I made the lizard after the blue and yarrow’s spiny lizard species on the southern desert boarder of Texas. A species that may be threatened due to a wall. If you look closely in this piece, I also made a chased copper plate that I used to make imprints of the Modocia Trilobite. Trilobites are among the most ancient complex organisms of all time as well as some of the most successful: they lived for 270 million years. They began their reign in the Cambrian period, when almost all the world was under water, including what is now a desert, 540 million years ago. I also painted traditional Hopi Native American designs depicting creation stories and celebrating their desert environment in Utah. This is a celebration of life in nearly unlivable conditions as well as a celebration of change and rebirth in the face of insurmountable obstacles. Struggling to survive in a dying ocean is a major problem for every marine organism and for us as well given that we rely on the ocean for food. The ocean determines global temperature patterns, and we swim and sail in it for fun. We clearly overfish, dump waste, and generally do not take care of our planet, so I want to make the Pacific giant octopus look like a warrior struggling to survive. Octopuses are supremely intelligent and adaptable, often communicating through their color. When they are threatened many species, especially the Pacific giant, will change colors, turning bright red, warning of their strength and angry disposition. I want you to feel like the octopus struggling to find food, struggling through rubble to be at home