"Avani" means "earth" in Hindi (according to Google Translate, it also means "lesson"); this word aligns closely with Aveda's stated mission. It made sense, then, as I was conceptualizing this piece for the salon, to encode AVANI in morse code into the light itself.

The lightbulb shapes themselves carry the code: looking at the sculpture from the open side of the alcove, and reading left to right with each letter spelled out front to back, it says:

A = globe, rod

V = globe, globe, globe, rod

A = globe, rod

N = rod, globe

I = globe, globe

The glass baubles around the lights are there for shine, reflectivity, and whimsy - they are not part of the code in this work.

CODE: Avani

Approx. 4' w x 2' d x 4' h

wood, wire, lightbulbs, glass, monofilament

Permanent installation: Athena Aveda Salon, Boylston Street, Boston, MA

Invoking the structure of an atom, this lighted sculpture made of quilting hoops brings to mind the valence shells surrounding an atom's nucleus, the latest electron movements leaving the brightest paths.

approx. 24" diameter

wood

Permanent installation: Athena Aveda Salon, Boylston Street, Boston, MA