Mars Jezero Crater Carving in Cedar

Jezero Crater is a 28-mile diameter crater currently hosting NASA’s Perseverance rover. We don’t often think of water and rivers when contemplating Martian craters, but you’re looking at a river delta breaching a crater wall. This piece is titled Who can the muddy water, and was made in collaboration with Dr. Robert Jacobsen, planetary geoscientist from the University of Tennessee, Knoxville.
This cedar-on-cedar piece, though large, is quite sparing at first glance. The wood (from Kentucky and aged in a barn for 30 years) was selected because of its age and wear–much like the surface of Mars. Though exhibiting minor degradation and lacking the striking grain patterns seen in other carvings, its magic lies in the perspective represented and its ability to transport the viewer to another place. The almost two-inch-thick crater wall at the top of the carving represents a tiny fraction of Jezero Crater’s circumference. The corresponding riverbed and delta deposit in the center of the piece can be almost lost in the larger carving. But when viewed on-edge from below the delta looking up to the crater wall, it is not difficult to imagine adjusting the oxygen flow and temperature controls of your spacesuit as you contemplate this alien vista from your new perspective. Both the carving and the rough-hewn frame are finished with copious amounts of mineral and boiled linseed oil and the carving is topped with finishing wax. 13” x 27” x 3.5”