Wall color:
While working in Cabo Pulmo, BCS Mexico, the similarity in patterns of these three amazing species struck me and led me to use them as a metaphor to show the connection of the dunes of the desert with the Sonoran sea. In this piece, I highlight the connection between land and sea and underscore how we can’t protect one without the other.
While snorkeling in Cabo Pulmo I spent a lot of time watching pufferfish swim among the rocks and coral. I had a soft spot for puffers, due to having bonded with the Arizona-Sonora Desert Museum’s Guinea fowl pufferfish (Biff), who resides in the Cabo Pulmo tank. I was so thrilled to find so many of his cousins in the Baja sea. It was only fitting that this fish be showcased in my art and used as a metaphor for connection and change.
The desert iguana has always been my favorite lizard, and this particular one that we saw in the dunes was a wonderful model, and its striking black and white pattern (different than others I’ve seen) instantly made me think of pufferfish, so my concept of connecting the desert with the sea was developed.
