98236.1 : school

Here, where the deep channels of Puget Sound churn against the southern edge of Whidbey Island, the journey intensifies.

Unlike the solitary travelers or small, cautious pods, this piece is a testament to the overwhelming, chaotic force of the swarm. A multitude of carved wooden salmon erupts from a single point on the rock. Their brass tethers are bundled tightly at the base before fanning out into a towering, vertical column. They are sharp, rough-hewn, and stacked tightly together, perfectly mimicking the dense, flashing walls of fish that gather in the cold currents before making their final push toward the mainland rivers.

In the waters off Clinton, returning salmon school together in massive numbers, pacing in the saltwater as their bodies prepare for the shock of the freshwater spawn. This sculpture freezes that exact moment of collective, restless anticipation. Some fish point directly upward toward the surface, while others bank sharply to the side, yet they are all bound to the same invisible, ancient pull.

When the sculpture is touched, the entire cluster comes alive in a frantic, synchronized vibration. The individual carvings blur into a single, pulsing organism. It is no longer just wood, stone, and wire; it becomes a striking echo of the wild, boiling waters of the Sound—a swarm of life caught in the beautiful, desperate rush toward home.

granite, fir & brass
6 × 6 × 18h