Anna Kaye

"Deluge" is a drawing of a large glass bottle filled with water, charcoal debris, and projections of fire. The word deluge means to overrun or overwhelm and is often used in the context of water, a drenching rain or flood. After a wildfire occurs, the unvegetated ground loses its absorbency. Combustion of vegetation during the fire can create a gas that penetrates the soil. Once cooled, the gas condenses to form a waxy coating causing the soil to repel water (hydrophobicity). Fire increases the risk for a flooding event. Debris, ash, soil, and sediment can be picked up by the flood and turn into a more severe mudflow. Deluge confines these natural disasters in a vessel. When a fire has been contained, it has been sufficiently suppressed within established boundaries of constructed firelines. Water and special chemicals are also used to extinguish the fire. Deluge illustrates the complex and cyclical interactions between fire and water.

"Fever" contains a fragment of burned wood found in the Hayman fire zone. The drawing is animated with a short film involving a flame traveling along its length. Fire is ignited when oxidation occurs: oxygen atoms combine with carbon and hydrogen to form water and carbon dioxide. If the heat cannot by released faster than it is created, then combustion occurs. Variation of color within a flame is formed by uneven temperature. Often the hottest part of a flame glows blue at its base and the cooler parts glow orange and yellow at the top. The sodium or salts in wood produces yellow or orange emissions. The blue part often indicates that the flame is very hot and that gas molecules are glowing.