Devil Horns (mosh safely), 2013, crystal quartz and sterling
  • Courtesy of the artist and Platform Gallery
  • Devil Horns (mosh safely), 2013, crystal quartz and sterling. You can see Debra Baxter's sculptures at Platform Gallery through April 26, and the opening is tonight from 6pm to 8pm.


You might recognize Devil Horns (mosh safely) as the bold, brilliant cover of the A&P, our quarterly arts and performance magazine, but now you can see it in the flesh.

This piece was inspired by a Soundgarden concert the artist, Debra Baxter, attended at the Paramount last year, where seas of devil horns were raised mightily between songs. Those moments were "weirdly powerful and beautiful," Baxter said. She took a photograph and wanted to translate the image into sculpture, but didn't figure out how to do it until she was at a rock store sifting through crystals. "I found one the size of my pinky and forefinger...I remember I started laughing in the store, I thought my idea was so hilarious," she said.

After the Platform show, Baxter's piece will be part of a traveling show called On Body and Soul: Contemporary Armor and Amulets, based on the book by Metalsmith magazine editor Suzanne Ramljak. The show will eventually make its way to the Tacoma Art Museum.

See more recommended art shows right here.