Several of the locations in my recent sculptures are metaphorical landscapes depicting places and images known as epicenters for conflict and discord while others have impacted me because of subtle implied distress within the confines of an otherwise serene locale. Several of the places that served as the locus for this work included relentless Israeli checkpoints and violent gaseous protests in The West Bank, Palestine; the ominous Megiddo Intersection in northern Israel; a sleepy, snow-covered iron truss bridge in Winnipeg, Canada; and an impending traffic jam lining an evacuation route in a tunnel in Washington DC while CSPAN broadcasts the demise of the American automotive industry. Witnessing these moments of crisis or dissonance in these various regions has inspired my recent work. I am compelled to negotiate the beauty within a disaster, and the terror or disgust within the "hopeful resolution" of current events.