Artwork > Fluke Sculptures

“Abrade”
“Abrade”
Acrylic on sandwood
48” x 20” x 3/4”
2023

Abrade is a sculptural painting highly influenced by a Humpback whale of the Salish Sea, known as “Scratchy” to naturalists of Washington and British Columbia.

The fluke patterns of many Humpback whales appear to radiate from the epicenter of the tail blades. Black pigments sometimes interact with underlying tissue fibers, but will give way to white scar tissue following interactions with the physical environment.

Fluke colorations and contours are highly unique to individual whales and are an inexhaustible source of curiosity.