Demeter Does the Math (and Cries) ᏗᏎᏍᏗ ᎤᎬᏩᎵ ᎾᏛᏁᎲ “ᏗᎻᏔ” (ᏃᏊᎴ ᎠᎶᏱᎲᎢ) disesdi ugvwahli nadvne “Dimita” (nowle adlohyihv’i), 2000, Waxed cloth, shell casings, thread, wood, 80 x 66 x 3.5 dimension variable (13 units); Photo credit: Dan Kvitka

The title refers to the Greek myth of Demeter and Persephone. While making this piece in 2000, I was considering several ideas: my own approaching midlife and menopause, the burgeoning fertility of my pubescent daughter, and the agro-chemical genetic modification technology that can render seeds infertile. The commodification of the life cycle appalled me. The piece is comprised of 13 strands, each with 28 voids to represent a lunar year of days. Created with brass shell casings from spent ammunition and with the post-manufacturing cotton scraps from reusable menstrual pads, the materials come laden with information. Tropes of violence and fertility/infertility all bound up with a reference to time and cycles.