Lava Bomb IV

After observing many moods of Mount Erebus (the world’s southernmost active volcano) during an Antarctic expedition, I returned to my Hawai‘i studio and began experimenting with ways to create geological forms. I reflected on conversations with volcanologists who scan snow and ice fields for “negative spaces” originating when hot magma blobs are ejected from the caldera and fall to the earth, melting holes in the substrate. Combining textile techniques with my mission to sculpt a rock-like matrix, my knitted series model "tephra" aka "lava bombs" ejected from Erebus or Kīlauea. The seven color layers suggest the hot core with cooling and darkening outer surfaces.  This sculpture may be suspended from the ceiling, caught mid-flight during its trajectory from a caldera, or may sit on a shelf or pedestal as if resting on a cooled lava or ice field. I am in awe of the volcanoes that continue to erupt from the earth’s interior, transform the landscape, evolve, and inspire.

Materials: Aluminum