Artist Tom Joyce based the abstract design of his sculptural lighting centerpiece on the agricultural origins of Phoenix, its complex canal system and early agricultural tools used by the Hohokam to provide irrigation from the Salt River. Its wing-like form refers to the myth of the Phoenix bird. Measuring twenty feet by seven feet, it comprises more than 140 pieces held together by 480 fasteners. Joyce hand-forged the metal armature pieces in a coal fire, then attached amber-colored sheets of mica to add translucence to the work. The mica sheets are edged in copper with a dark patina.
