Untitled Mesquite
$6,800.00
HAYLEY SMITH
Material and Technique
Mesquite, Acrylic
Turned, Carved, Scorched, Painted
Wall-mounted with a key-hole plate on back for installation
14” Dia x 2 1/2” D
About The Work
Working in Mesquite was a new challenge for me. The wood for this wall piece was cut from a thirty year old board. Often treated as a weed tree, Mesquite's attributes are many. It is well suited to my work as it's dimensionally stable, holds the crispest of details, and burns beautifully with a blow torch. Fire and wood are inseparable elements. Sweet smelling when worked, Mesquite is hard on tools and woodworkers. Given the harsh conditions it often grows in, that only seems fair.
The carved surface is a signature texture in my work. Inspired by an eroded rock face I saw while hiking in the "wonderland of rocks" that is the Chiricahua National Monument in the county where I live. I was fascinated by the holes in the rock, how they were interconnected and allowed the light to shine through. When we see things, new and unexpected things that we don't understand, we take the time to look closer and engage. Therefore enriching our own experience of the world we live in, and hopefully our desire to preserve it.
