New Work
As part of a conversation with National Park Service physical scientist Pam Sousanes, I became interested in average annual temperatures at Denali National Park and how changes in temperature affect permafrost. The distinctive polygon shapes created in areas of permafrost when contraction cracks are enlarged by ice wedges became the foundation of the piece, the shocking colors as you move up expressing the change in the rapidly changing landscape. The diagonal black slash represents the change in annual average temperature at Denali National Park from 1950 until now and the deep red horizontal gash is 32 degrees Fahrenheit, the point past which permanent loss of permafrost occurs.
In the Far North, our red line and tipping point is in a very different place.
Individual blue, then lime green and finally orange surface knots reflect the actual data - average annual temperatures - from which the piece draws its inspiration.