Oceana
The copepod is the cantilever on which the ocean’s food chain is balanced; this denizen swarms with their kin as the largest source of planktonic protein. These crustaceans are central to the vitality of humpbacks and large whales, yet are sustained by the nutrients their predators release. If the global climate and currents of the sea can grasp some equilibrium, the waltz between plankton and rorqual will persevere.
This composition was carved from one single piece of poplar wood in 2022, intended to be painted vertically as a breach and reflection image. For three years it sat as a silent sentinel in my studio. Recently I pondered the greater ecology of our oceans, and felt compelled to paint the minutae that often escape the homage they are due.