Debbie Crowley (Deb)

Debbie Crowley
South Beach, OR United States

Flameworked, fused, etched and soldered copper foiled panel. I have always been intrigued by the Portuguese Man O’ War (Physalia Physalis) which resembles a “jelly fish” but is actually a siphonophore. It is not a single animal, but rather a colony of zooids which are genetically the same but perform different tasks, which allow the colony to survive. There are 4 different zooids that make up the Man O’ War. Each type of zooid was challenging but a fun project to replicate their varied and individual characteristics on the torch and finally fuse into the colony. The Man O’ War packs quite the painful sting, but rarely is it fatal. The long hunting tentacles can stretch over 150 feet!

Dimensiions: 39 x 21 x 2 inches