What Remains
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What Remains Exhibition. Haw Contemporary. 2016. Photo Credit E.G. Schempf
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Rosetta Stone Back Side. Pastel pencils on hand-toned paper. 52" x 41". 2016.
The Rosetta Stone is a rock stele inscribed with a decree from King Ptolemy V in 196 BCE. The decree is written in three scripts: hieroglyphic, demotic, and Greek. The stone provides a key for the modern understanding of Egyptian hieroglyphs, which were previously undecipherable. This to-scale drawing represents the back side of the Rosetta Stone, which contains none of the important historical information. Object is in the British Museum, museum number EA24.
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Orion Star Map, diptych. charcoal pencils on hand-toned paper. 64”x 23”. 2015.
In this drawing I have superimposed the image of an archaeological object (one of the oldest known representations of the human form, dated c. 35,000 BCE and thought to be the first star chart following the movements of the Orion constellation) against the image of the constellation Orion, which I observed in the spring of 2015. Suspended in space, this image draws a connection between the observable constellation and the anthropomorphic figure depicted on the object. This longstanding tradition of seeing images of ourselves in the sky, and conjuring stories about how stars came to be where they are, is a beautiful record of human beings trying to understand the vast world around them.
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Orion Star Map, diptych. left panel. charcoal pencils on hand-toned paper. 32”x 23”. 2015.
This is a representation of the front side of the carved mammoth tusk found in Germany, 1979. This is one of the earliest representations of the human figure and it is thought to represent the constellation of Orion.
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Orion Star Map, diptych. right panel. charcoal pencils on hand-toned paper. 32”x 23”. 2015.
This is a representation of the back side of the carved mammoth tusk found in Germany 1979. It depicts the 84 notches carved into the ivory, thought to represent the 84 days the Orion constellation is visible in the northern hemisphere.
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Orion Star Map, diptych. right panel detail. charcoal pencils on hand-toned paper. 32”x 23”. 2015. This is a representation of the back side of the carved mammoth tusk found in Germany 1979. It depicts the 84 notches carved into the ivory, thought to represent the 84 days the Orion constellation is visible in the northern hemisphere.
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Ancient Lunar Eclipse Cuneiform Tablet. pastel pencils and gouache on paper. 27" x 17". 2016.
This drawing represents an ancient Babylonian clay tablet that refers to a lunar eclipse between the 14th and 21st days of the month. Object is in the British Museum, object number ME. 16775.
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Ancient Cuneiform Star Map. pastel pencil on hand-toned gouache paper. 10" x 10". 2016. Sold
This drawing represents a circular clay tablet called a planisphere, which maps various constellations. It is from the Neo-Assyrian Empire. With contemporary computer analysis it has been determined that the tablet accurately depicts the night sky of January 3-4, 650 BCE, over Nineveh. Object is in the British Museum, object number K.8538.
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Tektite, Indochinite. pastel pencils on hand-toned paper, 10” x 16”. 2015.
Tektites are formed when a meteorite collides with the earth with such force that it liquefies upon impact, then mixes with earth material and is thrown at high speed into the upper atmosphere. During this time the material cools and hardens, usually in a teardrop or dumbbell shape. Object is in a private collection.
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Tektite, Indochinite. pastel pencils on hand-toned paper. 10” x 16”. 2015. Tektites are formed when a meteorite collides with the earth with such force that it liquefies upon impact, then mixes with earth material and is thrown at high speed into the upper atmosphere. During this time the material cools and hardens, usually in a teardrop or dumbbell shape. Object is in a private collection.
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A Time Apart (2), diptych. pastel pencils on hand-toned gouache paper. 55" x 48" each. 2016.
In this diptych a connection is drawn between two disparate objects: the fossil of a dinosaur egg is approximately 70 million years old; the NGC 5585 Galaxy is approximately 70 million light years away. The light we see from the galaxy left its stars when the egg was laid.
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A Time Apart (2). left panel: Dinosaur Egg Fossil. pastel pencils on hand-toned gouache paper. 55" x 48". 2016.
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A Time Apart (2). left panel detail: Dinosaur Egg Fossil. pastel pencils on hand-toned gouache paper. 55" x 48". 2016.
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A Time Apart (2). left panel detail: Dinosaur Egg Fossil. pastel pencils on hand-toned gouache paper. 55" x 48". 2016.
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A Time Apart (2). left panel detail: Dinosaur Egg Fossil. pastel pencils on hand-toned gouache paper. 55" x 48". 2016.
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A Time Apart (2). right panel: Galaxy NGC 3610. pastel pencils on hand-toned gouache paper. 55" x 48". 2016.
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A Time Apart (2). right panel detail: Galaxy NGC 3610. pastel pencils on hand-toned gouache paper. 55" x 48". 2016.
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A Time Apart (2). right panel detail: Galaxy NGC 3610. pastel pencils on hand-toned gouache paper. 55" x 48". 2016.
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A Time Apart (2). right panel detail: Galaxy NGC 3610. pastel pencils on hand-toned gouache paper. 55" x 48". 2016.
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A Time Apart (3), diptych. pastel pencils and gouache on paper. 40" x 35" and 40" x 40". 2016.
Left panel depicts a 70-million-year-old Hadrosaur egg. The right panel depicts the barred spiral galaxy NGC 4639, which is 70 million light years away. The fossil is in a private collection and the galaxy is in the sky.
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A Time Apart (3). left panel: Galaxy NGC 4639. pastel pencils on hand-toned paper, 40" x 40". 2015.
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A Time Apart (3). left panel: Galaxy NGC 4639. pastel pencils on hand-toned paper, 40" x 40". 2015.
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A Time Apart (3). right panel: 70 Million Year Old Fossilized Dinosaur Egg. pastel pencils and gouache on paper. 40" x 35". 2016.
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A Time Apart (3). right panel detail: 70 Million Year Old Fossilized Dinosaur Egg. pastel pencils and gouache on paper. 40" x 35". 2016. A Time Apart (3). Right panel: 70 Million Year Old Fossilized Dinosaur Egg. pastel pencils and gouache on paper. 40" x 35". 2016.
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A Time Apart (3). right panel detail: 70 Million Year Old Fossilized Dinosaur Egg. pastel pencils and gouache on paper. 40" x 35". 2016. A Time Apart (3). Right panel: 70 Million Year Old Fossilized Dinosaur Egg. pastel pencils and gouache on paper. 40" x 35". 2016.
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Fossilized Coral. pastel pencils on hand-toned paper. 10" x 10". 2016. Sold
From the Paleozoic era, 251-542 million years old. At the beginning of this era, there was a sudden increase in the diversity and complexity of life forms. The first plants and animals with hard body parts, including coral, emerged and began to leave a substantial fossil record. Today more than 50% of the world’s coral is in danger of bleaching and/or extinction. Object is in the National History Museum of London, listed as Acervularia Ananas (Linnaeus).
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Fossilized Fern Leaf. pastel pencils on hand-toned paper. 10" x 10". 2016.
Depiction of a fossilized impression of a fern leaf from the Upper Carboniferous period, 280-310 million years ago. During this time, warm temperatures and swampy environments led to a flourishing of plant life, including ferns. As these plants died, their decaying material formed the coal reserves used to this day. Object is in the National History Museum of London, listed as Neuropteris Gigantea Sternberg.
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Sikhote-Alin Meteorite. pastel pencil on hand-toned gouache paper. 10" x 10". 2016.
This drawing represents a fragment from the 1947 Sikhote-Alin meteorite strike in Siberia. When this meteorite entered earth’s atmosphere, it exploded in mid-air, creating a sonic boom across the continent. Object is owned by the artist.
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Velociraptor Skull. pastel pencils on hand-toned paper, 52" x 40". 2015. Sold
Velociraptor was a dinosaur that lived in the Late Cretaceous period, 71-75 million years ago.
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Velociraptor Skull, detail. pastel pencils on hand-toned paper, 52" x 40". 2015.
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Day Moon. charcoal pencils on hand-toned paper. 24” x 25” 2015. Sold
This is a drawing of a waxing moon in the sixth day of its cycle. It is a representation of the moon as seen from an 8” refractor telescope with a 25mm eyepiece, and informed by lunar maps and photos.
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Detail of Day Moon, detail. charcoal pencils on toned paper.24”x 25”. 2015.
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M13, Globular Cluster (2). charcoal pencils on hand-toned paper. 2015.
This is a drawing of the globular star cluster M13. There are approximately 300,000 stars in the cluster, some of them 11.7 billion years old. These stars are some of the oldest objects in our galaxy and easily the oldest objects most people can ever hope to see.
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M13, Globular Cluster (1). charcoal pencils on hand-toned paper. 2015.
This is a drawing of the globular star cluster M13. There are approximately 300,000 stars in the cluster, some of them 11.7 billion years old. These stars are some of the oldest objects in our galaxy and easily the oldest objects most people can ever hope to see.