Xanthoparmelia Cumberlandia or The Cumberland Rock-Shield

I was inspired by the growths I found on the rocks of the forests I hiked while on a trip to Santa Fe. They grew in organic clusters along the surfaces I found there, in essence, decorating them with pattern and color. I drew a connection between these growths and how people decorate their skin with pattern in the form of tattoos. The inherent translucent nature of glass allows the imagery placed on glass wearables to interact with the wearer's skin, mimicking the effects of imagery drawn directly on its surface.

I first blew a rondel in the hotshop, into which I sandblasted an image I had drawn of the cumberland rock-sheild using photo resist. I then fused glass powders into this image in layers of color and finished the piece by cutting out its organic shape and slumping it into a gentle curve so that it would rest on the slope of a woman's chest.