Cherrystone clams, wax, terry cloth towel, charcoal, pewter, artist made shelf 8 x 14 x 2 in

Both works on view were made while in residence at Stove Works in March/April 2024. I have been using angels and their relationship to humans as a framework to think about and engage with the found objects that land on my studio's touch table, beginning with clamshells. I look at them as creatures that are both objects of and subject to human consumption. They are masters of alchemy, vital members of their ecosystems, filtering thousands of gallons of water to sustain themselves and make the shells that protect them. When these shells decompose, they become limestone, a key ingredient in the concrete we use to build our cities. The work explores the question: As what we consume shifts the composition of what they are filtering–with microplastics, forever chemicals, and increased debris, how will it change the structures we build and live in? Will these angels persist or disappear into mythology and what does that mythology look like?