Biophilia: Celestial Shaped Vessel by Kazuhiro Toyama

Innovative techniques that disrupt our preconceptions of the properties and behaviors of metal have been used to create this work. The artist has created a new technique based on thermal spraying, an industrial coating process. Melted copper, which in its liquid state is almost uncontrollable, has been sprayed onto a hemisphere-shaped mold. The resulting vessel has a large outer rim and sections have been selectively oxidized using heat. Areas of cracking formed during the cooling process further enhance the form’s planetary likeness and lend a fragile quality that speaks to wider narratives around social and environmental collapse.