Cascading Collapse

The head and fins of this walleye are bisque-fired clay, making them permanent, while the body—designed to resemble the bottom of a river—is left as raw clay. When presenting this piece, I poured water over it to cause the raw clay to dissolve. In doing this, I wanted to represent the interconnectedness of Walleyes with their river habitats. The part of the fish consumed is the part that dissolves away. As we overfish and eat Walleye and other important foundation species, we are also contributing to the gradual collapse of their ecosystem.