The Story Behind "Inheritance"

Inheritance

Northern Right Whale

18 x 18 in | Graphite on Yupo | 2025

This drawing of a whale and her calf—alongside a human and her daughter—positions motherhood as a cross-species experience, one that encompasses strength, vulnerability, responsibility, and protection. By presenting these parallel relationships, the work underscores both the resilience and the precarity of maternal bonds.

For the North Atlantic Right Whale, the challenges of motherhood are intensified by the realities of endangerment. The species is critically endangered, with fewer than 370 individuals remaining, and fewer than 70 reproductively active females. Threats include ship strikes, entanglement in fishing gear such as buoy ropes, and noise pollution that interferes with migration and communication.

Scientific studies show that entanglement disproportionately affects females. Even minor incidents can be fatal, and females are twice as likely as males to die as a result. This imbalance highlights the significant pressures placed on the very individuals most essential to the species’ survival.

By juxtaposing human and whale maternal pairs, the work reflects on the universality of caregiving while pointing to the urgent circumstances facing one of the ocean’s most imperiled species.