Vapor

Object NameMosaic

Artist / Maker Rebecca Ekstrand (American, b. 1950)

Date2013

MediumMosaic tile installation

Dimensions81 × 59 in. (205.7 × 149.9 cm)

ClassificationsSculpture

Credit LineCommissioned by University Museums. Iowa Art in State Buildings Project for Hach Hall.

Object numberU2013.65

Status

On view

Collections

CultureAmerican

Label TextFrom the University Museums Collections Handbook, vol. 2, 2025: Over four floors of Hach Hall, the Chemistry building at Iowa State, Rebecca Ekstrand’s mosaic tile installations highlight the chemical properties of water. Located at the entry point of the restrooms and surrounding the water fountain, each floor represents a different property. Water is depicted in its four states: Frozen–an icy arctic blue, Liquid–depicted with two goldfish floating throughout the mosaic, Vapor–depicted in the form of clouds, and finally Supercritical–found in water at 705º F (where it is neither liquid nor gas) as a bright orange mosaic with blue flame. Chemistry is the science of change and water’s ability to transform from solid to gas within human’s everyday experience of weather is a perfect metaphor for the chemical processes studied in Hach Hall. Rebecca Ekstrand is an Iowa artist specializing in public art and works with a range of media to fit the needs of individual projects. Her work is represented in a variety of media across University Museums’ permanent collection, from the painted mural Davidson’s Dream in Elings Hall, terracotta panels in the Union Drive Association dormitory, film on glass for the College of Education, to these mosaic tile installations.

Locations