“THEY CHOSE THE SEA 1” 2026
FOR SHIPS OF THE SEA MARITIME MUSEUM’S 2026 “SUPPER AT SEA”
TISSUE WELT CORD, YARN, ACRYLIC PAINT
23X23X6”
“THEY CHOSE THE SEA 2” 2026
FOR SHIPS OF THE SEA MARITIME MUSEUM’S 2026 “SUPPER AT SEA”
TISSUE WELT CORD, YARN, ACRYLIC PAINT
18.5X18.5X6”
“THEY CHOSE THE SEA 3” 2026
FOR SHIPS OF THE SEA MARITIME MUSEUM’S 2026 “SUPPER AT SEA”
TISSUE WELT CORD, YARN, ACRYLIC PAINT
16X16X6”
“THEY CHOSE THE SEA 4” 2026
FOR SHIPS OF THE SEA MARITIME MUSEUM’S 2026 “SUPPER AT SEA”
TISSUE WELT CORD, YARN, ACRYLIC PAINT
16X16X6”
“THEY CHOSE THE SEA 5” 2026
FOR SHIPS OF THE SEA MARITIME MUSEUM’S 2026 “SUPPER AT SEA”
TISSUE WELT CORD, YARN, ACRYLIC PAINT
14X14X6”
“THEY CHOSE THE SEA 6” 2026
FOR SHIPS OF THE SEA MARITIME MUSEUM’S 2026 “SUPPER AT SEA”
TISSUE WELT CORD, YARN, ACRYLIC PAINT
14X14X6”
“THEY CHOSE THE SEA 7” 2026
FOR SHIPS OF THE SEA MARITIME MUSEUM’S 2026 “SUPPER AT SEA”
TISSUE WELT CORD, YARN, ACRYLIC PAINT
14X14X6”
“They Chose the Sea” No. 1-7 are coiled wall-sculptures made from the same tissue welt cord used to create “Castor & Pollux” for “Supper at Sea” 2025. Seven flower forms resulted from reworking the material until it was all transformed. Historically, flowers were considered bad luck aboard ships and were thrown overboard, believed to predict a death/funeral taking place at sea. Here, the flowers are kept and preserved, together in a group of seven, a number associated with luck, protection, and divine connection.
The title references Eileen Mahoney’s poem In Waters Deep, which reflects on sailors lost at sea and the ocean becoming their grave, considering remembrance without traditional markers. They Chose the Sea may be a death omen, or may be honoring and connecting us to those who have passed.
Made from recycled materials, the sculptures emphasize growth and change, how something used or discarded can take on new form and significance. The work reflects an ongoing interest in how perspective shapes meaning, and how we can allow different symbols, signs, and language to coexist and shift around the complexities of life and history.
“In Waters Deep”
In ocean wastes no poppies blow,
No crosses stand in ordered row,
There young hearts sleep… beneath the wave…
The spirited, the good, the brave,
But stars a constant vigil keep,
For them who lie beneath the deep.
‘Tis true you cannot kneel in prayer
On certain spot and think. “He’s there.”
But you can to the ocean go…
See whitecaps marching row on row;
Know one for him will always ride…
In and out… with every tide.
And when your span of life is passed,
He’ll meet you at the “Captain’s Mast.”
And they who mourn on distant shore
For sailors who’ll come home no more,
Can dry their tears and pray for these
Who rest beneath the heaving seas…
For stars that shine and winds that blow
And whitecaps marching row on row.
And they can never lonely be
For when they lived… they chose the sea.
In ocean wastes no poppies blow,
No crosses stand in ordered row,
There young hearts sleep… beneath the wave…
The spirited, the good, the brave,
But stars a constant vigil keep,
For them who lie beneath the deep.
‘Tis true you cannot kneel in prayer
On certain spot and think. “He’s there.”
But you can to the ocean go…
See whitecaps marching row on row;
Know one for him will always ride…
In and out… with every tide.
And when your span of life is passed,
He’ll meet you at the “Captain’s Mast.”
And they who mourn on distant shore
For sailors who’ll come home no more,
Can dry their tears and pray for these
Who rest beneath the heaving seas…
For stars that shine and winds that blow
And whitecaps marching row on row.
And they can never lonely be
For when they lived… they chose the sea.
©2001 by Eileen Mahoney
