Map Viewer Tripods

Borrowing the visual language from early natural science instruments, this series of dining implements alludes to the time when humanity relied on direct observations of nature to understand the mystery of the relationships between the various elements in the natural world.

These pieces enable participants to step back in time and re-discover that sense of wonder, while playfully examining the micro and macro aspects of their food.

Each grouping of objects in the series is based on a specific type of apparatus: antique opera binoculars, map readers, telescope/microscope barrels, proportional drafting, and navigational chart dividers. Each antique piece is reassembled and retrofitted with other found and hand-fabricated elements to create an individually unique piece. A majority of the antique objects were found on the internet, some even coming from Europe and South America, while additional optical lenses were acquired from old surplus sources in the USA. Tools and techniques used in that transformation varied from object to object and material to material, but generally included turning or milling with precision heavy machine tools, sawing, filing, forming, and finishing with jeweler's and dental hand and light machine tools. The time involved in making each piece varied, with simpler ones taking less than a day, while some more complicated pieces required several days of creative problem-solving to resolve.

Limited edition from the series Spectacle, made in 2016. Each piece is signed and dated by the artist.

Object are made from hand-wrought legs. map magnifier, brass, and bronze utensils.