Sail in an Egg Shell, 2025

These porcelain cast eggs are artworks based on superstitions found within folklore. Eggs have long been associated with magic, protection, and transformation, and many traditions warn that eggshells must be broken after an egg is eaten or boiled, otherwise it may bring bad luck.

This belief is closely tied to maritime folklore. Some sea-faring communities believed that if an eggshell was left intact, a witch could steal it and use it as a boat. Sailing the fragile shell across the sea, she could summon powerful storms capable of damaging ships or causing them to sink. Other versions of the folklore say witches used eggshell boats simply to travel about and cause mischief.

A related story appears in Gypsy Sorcerer (1891) by Charles Leland. In it, a girl eating an egg is told to crush the shell so witches cannot use it. Skeptical, she throws the shell away, saying, “I don't see why witches should not have boats as well as other people… Witch, there is your boat!” To her amazement, the shell is caught by the wind and whirled away until it disappears, while a voice calls back, “I thank you!”

Sail in an Egg Shell draws on these superstitions, transforming the fragile form of the eggshell into porcelain—preserving a moment between everyday domestic ritual and the imaginative world of folklore.