Low Tide

Blown and sand carved glass
23.5" x 10" x 4"

Excerpt from the "Raven Is as Raven Does: New Takes on Old Stories" by Garth Stein:

"He walked down to the beach, always a hopeful place to find food, and when he
arrived, he noted that the tide was very far out—much farther than usual. Rather than
dwelling upon the reason(s) why the tide was exceptionally low, he chose to avail himself of
the clams and mussels and urchins which were plentiful on the exposed rocks, as well as
the crabs hiding in the pools beneath the rocks."

Tide Woman

Blown and sand carved glass
10.5" x 7.75 x 20"

Excerpt from the "Raven Is as Raven Does: New Takes on Old Stories" by Garth Stein:

He looked for the cause of this chaos, for every effect has a cause, except for the very First Effect, which, of course, still had a cause, though one of a divine and therefore inexplicable nature. He looked around until he saw an old woman pushing the tide in and out randomly and with no regard for the schedule.
“Look here, Old Woman,” called Raven. “Are you the keeper of the tide?”
“I am, truly,” the Old Woman muttered, though she seemed distracted.

Upon the Mountain Top

Blown and sand carved glass, gold gilding
23.75" x 13" x 13.5"

Excerpt from the "Raven Is as Raven Does: New Takes on Old Stories" by Garth Stein:

"Perhaps it was the paleness of the blue sky, or the brightness of the sun, or the
patterns of the rivers and mountains and oceans he could see below him...we will never
know the cause of Raven’s actions; some say, neither will he. But something stopped
Raven that afternoon, as he alit upon a mountain top, the moon so close he could touch it.
In the dawn-dusk he felt the prickle of the stars on his feathers and he stretch-yawned and
cracked his neck."

Salmon Bonnet

Blown and sand carved glass
8.75" x 13" x 8"

Excerpt from the "Raven Is as Raven Does: New Takes on Old Stories" by Garth Stein:

“What is it you are about, you Killer Whales, parading in the ocean with dead fish on your heads?” Raven asked.

“These are our bonnets,” replied Mother Killer Whale, for Killer Whales, like Indians, are matriarchal in their social structures, so naturally the Mother would take the lead. “We are having an Easter parade,” said she.

Majestic Thunderbird

Blown and sand carved glass
22.75" x 23.5" x 13"

Excerpt from the "Raven Is as Raven Does: New Takes on Old Stories" by Garth Stein:

Mountain Goat pointed over Raven’s shoulder to a resplendent golden bird hovering in the sky over the mountain. With each stroke of the great bird’s wings, the sky cracked with a deafening explosion.

Opening the Door of the Ocean

Blown and sand carved glass
12.75" x 24.5" x 24.5"

Excerpt from the "Raven Is as Raven Does: New Takes on Old Stories" by Garth Stein:

He left them, then, those Killer Whales cheering on the resurrection while wearing bonnets of dead salmon. He went to the beach and lifted the edge of the water and went underneath, down to Killer Whale Town to see if there was some mischief he could scare up, for despite the parade of salmon-wearing Killer Whales, things were pretty dull, and when things got dull, Raven remembered his mission to save the world, though the World was neither asking for nor willing to be saved.

Killer Whale Town

Blown and sand carved glass
16.25" x 13.5" x 3.25"

Excerpt from the "Raven Is as Raven Does: New Takes on Old Stories" by Garth Stein:

"When Raven arrived in Killer Whale Town, he saw that all the Killer Whales were
gathered beneath a large tent. They were having a meeting of some kind.

Raven snuck into the back of the revival tent and listened to the orator, a Killer
Whale Chief: 'The earth does not belong to man, man belongs to the earth,' Killer Whale
Chief exhorted. 'All things are connected like the blood that unites us all. Man did not
weave the web of life; he is merely a strand in it. Whatever he does to the web, he does to
himself!' "

Shark Teeth

Blown and sand carved glass
24" x 15" x 11"

Excerpt from the "Raven Is as Raven Does: New Takes on Old Stories" by Garth Stein:

“What are you doing?” asked Raven. “And why are you doing it?”
“We’re sharpening our teeth,” said the sharks. “All the better to eat you!”
“Haha!” cried Raven, for he knew the sharks would never eat him. “If you bite me, all
the teeth will break out of your head! Who, then, is on the menu tonight, fellows?”

Playful Killer Whales

Blown and sand carved glass
9.5" x 24.25" x 8"

Excerpt from the "Raven Is as Raven Does: New Takes on Old Stories" by Garth Stein:

“We are going to sink their sailboats as a form of low-violence protest!” said Killer Whale Chief.

“Interesting tactic,” said Raven. “I suppose you’re going after sailboats because they are soft targets and relatively easy to sink?”

Tossed in the Surf

Blown and sand carved glass
10.5" x 9.5" x 16.5"

Excerpt from the "Raven Is as Raven Does: New Takes on Old Stories" by Garth Stein:

He soared in a gentle arc toward the ocean, for in the back of his mind he associated the ocean with food, and he was, generally speaking, nearly always hungry.

Genetically Modified

Blown and sand carved glass
12" x 23" x 5"

Excerpt from the "Raven Is as Raven Does: New Takes on Old Stories" by Garth Stein:

“Sir, Raven,” the man said. “We’ve been awaiting your arrival. Welcome to this vessel. I am the captain, though since you outrank me, while on this boat, it is under your command!”

“Thank you, good sir!” Raven cawed, a little startled by the formality. “And may I enquire as to the nature of this operation you are operating?”

“Of course, sir,” said Captain. “We are operating an operation that grows and then releases into the food chain farmed, genetically modified salmon.”

King Raven Brand TM

Blown and sand carved glass
7.75" x 7.75" x 7.75"

Excerpt from the "Raven Is as Raven Does: New Takes on Old Stories" by Garth Stein:

" 'Very clever,' said Raven. 'Nearly devious. And what do you call these Salmon?'
'We call them King Raven Brand Enhanced Salmon-Flavored Food Product TM!'
Captain exclaimed. He showed Raven a box with the logo on the side—Raven, wearing a
crown, with a small pink salmon in his talons."

Mountain Goats Realm

Blown and sand carved glass
18" x 13.5" x 13"

Excerpt from the "Raven Is as Raven Does: New Takes on Old Stories" by Garth Stein:

Raven saw Mountain Goat then, Zen-like and regal with his beard so long, sitting atop the mountain.
“But it is a world full of chaos,” said Raven.
“Chaos is as chaos does,” said Mountain Goat.

Domain of the Frog Kingdom

Blown and sand carved glass
14" x 13" x 13"

Excerpt from the "Raven Is as Raven Does: New Takes on Old Stories" by Garth Stein:

“Excuse me,” Raven interrupted. “King of the Frogs? There are so many kinds of frogs. He’s the king of all of them? There’s one king for all Frogdom?”
“Yes, Mountain Goat said, “One king for all Frogdom.”
“Are Toads included in Frogdom?” asked Raven.
“Not Toads.”
“Ah,” said Raven. “There is some order in the world.”

Inner Dialoge

Blown and sand carved glass
20.25" x 11" x 9"

Excerpt from the "Raven Is as Raven Does: New Takes on Old Stories" by Garth Stein:

Now Raven had abandoned People before, if you equivalate going to sleep with abandoning the wakeful dimension. It is true that when you sleep, you are allowing your consciousness to opt out of the wakeful dimension in favor of a dream dimension. You are still you; however, your consciousness is not confined to your body but allowed to roam freely.

Raven's Lament

Lead crystal
35.75” x 12” x 6”

Raven returns to his home after a long journey. Instead of trees he finds tall buildings. Raven continues to travel to a beach where he finds a log that has washed out to sea and is cast back onto the beach.

The log is heavy with saltwater. It sits on the beach in the sunlight while the water, which is metaphorically grief, starts to leave the log. Raven is communing with the log as he gazes up at the tall buildings and tries to understand how the world has changed.