A Few Pieces and Thoughts (October)

One thought that has been present in my mind since arriving in Iceland, as shown by some of the rock pile concepts in an earlier post, is how everything that we produce ultimately comes from the earth. Of course, this isn't meant to imply that nothing we make is harmful, however. The idea is to simplify the concept of our interactions with our surroundings in an attempt to help recognize that we are animals living on this planet and not the creators of our own world.

Early in my stay in Skagastrond, I took a walk along the shoreline, which has a rock wall separating the ocean and the beaches from the higer ground. Where the rocks met the ocean, I often found old industrial objects that had been rusted to the point that they fit right in with the seaweed, plants, and rocks that also lined the shore. My favorite objects were chunks of concrete with twisted, rusted rebar running in and out of them. Juxtaposed with the natural rocks and scraggily seaweed, the man made objects appeared no different than them, a perfect example of the aforementioned thought.

So of course I grabbed some of the good pieces of junk and took them to the studio. Then i found some natural objects that fit with them nicely and created these three fusions of manmade and natural objects, where the end of one and the beginning of the other is indecipherable without closer inspection.


Recently, a new thought has been constantly in my mind, due in part, undoubtedly, to the trip of terror that went down just over a week ago.

As I discussed in my proposal to come to Iceland, Icelanders use their landscape efficiently to fuel their society, whether making the most of hydroelectric power or geothermal energy, which are available due to the intensity of the landscape. However, along with the benefits of such an intense environment, come difficulties. Somehow I manage to still be surprised when I realize that everything is balanced. Sure, Icelanders can use their environment to their advantage, but before they can do this, they must be able to survive it.

I have yet to think of good ways to show this balance. I have a few ideas but am not a huge fan of any of them. However, the following drawing is an idea for a piece that loosely relates to this concept, showing the necessity to overcome the environment in order to live comfortably and take part in daily activities. It is basically just a combination of two things that are commonly seen in Iceland... old school baby carriages and big snow tires. If nothing else, it'll look pretty funny.


Lastly, this is my little troll friend that I made when I was bored one day. He doesn't have a name yet.