"A Miner's Memorial", 10 feet tall by 10.5 feet in diameter, "Artifact Steel", 2003 ■

“A Miner's Memorial” was formed from 160 feet of salvaged 20 inch diameter riveted water pipe. This pipe was manufactured by rolling 4 foot long pieces of sheet steel into pipe and fastening the overlapping joint with rivets. Five of the 4 foot lengths were riveted end to end to form 20 foot long pieces that were then joined in the field to form water pipelines. ■

A cold February day at minus 40 degrees. Vertically oriented, Miner's Memorial does a good job of shedding its snow cover. ■

In the 50's and 60's when I was growing up in Fairbanks, 'dead' abandoned mining hardware could easily be found in the woods, it seemed to be everywhere. Not just shovels and gold pans but large equipment; tractors, draglines, steam boilers and the occasional complete gold dredge were just shut down when their work was done. That is now mostly gone. There were also many resolute and ingenious gold miners still around who had built whatever tools they needed to get the gold out. They too are mostly gone. ■

I imagine this sculpture as mysterious “found” mining equipment. It would have been used for some now forgotten but no doubt very noisy mining operation. It worked so well that it was very nearly worn out before being discarded. This used up carcass would have been discovered on a tailing pile with trees growing through it. ■

I was born and have lived most of my life in Fairbanks and have many strong connections to mining. That influence has given me a healthy respect for doing what you can with what you have, and great satisfaction in giving new life and form to discarded materials. “A Miner's Memorial” is resolute, fundamental and intensely industrial. These are qualities that also describe the early miners of the interior of Alaska. ■

"Alaskan Ironweed", 6' wide X 5' tall, stainless steel bar and manganese steel mill balls, 2004 ■

Gold bearing ore from the mines of the interior of Alaska must be crushed in order to remove the gold. Manganese steel mill balls and ore are rotated in a large drum (ball mill) where the balls fall into the rock reducing it nearly to powder. Over time, although made from very hard steel, the balls wear down simply by abrasion. They are also very brittle and sometimes shatter into chips and halves. These worn out mill balls have earned their character from a lifetime of brutal work in the mines. These balls are hand picked from a pile on its way to being recycled. ■

The skilled and articulate installation crew relaxing after completing another job without injury. ■