Priscilla DeVantier Bowen (1940-2015)

Labels byAnwiya Youkhanna, MST 622 Researching & Presenting Museum Collections, 2020

The dated appearance of this item breaks from the monotony of artworks applied to canvas, as it uses a recognizably unique material. Pastel and conté crayon are presented on handmade paper from Nepal. This allows for the simulation of physical forces of water waves as the moon and other gravitational forces influence the tides. One may perceive the setting as the feeling of being swayed in a boat while sailing through a salty sea. The viewer is left with a humbling experience of the compound on which all life depends—as Carl Sagan called it, this pale blue dot.

For Youths:

At first glance this may appear as a relic that is aged, but that effect is a deliberate part of its design. This work by Priscilla DeVanter Bowen moves away from ordinary paintings on canvas by using unique material. The pastel and conté crayon are applied to handmade paper from Nepal. This substance is more suitable to simulate the high and low tides of water waves, as they are pulled by the forces of gravity. The overall effect upholds the realism of the compound to which all lifeforms on Earth depend on. Elements of the cosmos formed an abundance of water on this planet, which is the lifeblood of all organisms.