Years of Life Lost visualizes the toxic aftermath of corporate mining in rural, low-income, predominantly communities of color throughout the Sonoran Desert, just north of the U.S. Mexico border. In many rural communities, slag is left behind in massive mounds of waste. In this work, the slag rock was collected and kiln-casted with glass to form human bones, representing the community's years of life lost from the toxic trespass of chemicals into their bodies, without their knowledge or consent.

The slag causes the glass to crack in the kiln, symbolizing one of the many potential health effects of chronic chemical exposure: weak and brittle bones (most commonly associated with lead). The slag interjected into the bones epitomizes how the body carries the burden of corporate pollution that shapes people’s health, exposures, and opportunities.

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Years of Life lost (before they can ossify)