This work by Miya Ando deploys silver nitrate as an agent of transformation to alter the visual and material presence of a cut, reclaimed wood. SIlver nitrate is related to the chemical substance used in traditional photography to burn an image onto a surface. In its liquid form, it is used as a healing agent to cauterize wounds.

Ando is a multidisciplinary abstract artist whose works reference the ephemerality of nature and the transitory nature of existence. She is a practicing Buddhist. The images and forms that she creates reference such fleeting stuff as clouds, moonlight, tides, and the seasons. Her materials—such as steel, glass, and aluminum—convey a sense of durability and strength. Transformed by Ando, materials related to permanence become embodiments of impermanence.

Ando presents the titles of her works in Japanese and English. During her time living in Japan, she researched literary and historical texts, compiling poetic Japanese descriptions of natural phenomena. Present in the Japanese descriptions are nuanced layers of thought often lacking in the English translation. These bi-lingual titles convey the sense of duality Ando experiences living between two cultures.