"Tsunami Cornet" is a unique, one-of-a-kind sculpture exemplifying what might happen to a classical jazz instrument if it were washed out to sea in a violent storm and found a new home deep on the ocean floor. Surgical staples, tubes and hoses, and other medical utensils cloak the small instrument in ways that remind us simultaneously of life at the bottom of the sea and of the music that once vibrated from the horn.

This sculpture was created exclusively for the Tipitina's Foundation in April 2013. It is part of a series of works that re-examine human-made objects that have found their way into the world's oceans through natural disasters or human neglect. In 2012, artist Tony Bayles discovered three semi-truck loads of expired medical supplies in a warehouse scheduled for demolition and slated to go to landfill. He is recycling these materials into artistic renderings that call attention to the extensive waste in our way of life and to the power of nature to overcome human society.

About the Artist:

Tony Marvin Bayles (1966-) is an artist and design consultant living in Indianapolis, Indiana. Growing up in northern, rural Louisiana, he finds inspiration in nature and the world around him. His life has been an extraordinary journey, one that has exposed him to the best and worst of humankind and opened him to see, laugh, cry, and share the human experience in new ways.

In his art, he strives to create new windows to help us see more clearly the beauty and peace in the textures, colors, shapes, and structures of everyday things that surround us. He inspires people to look beyond the societal categories imposed on us, appreciate the mundane and ordinary, and change the world. Making art helps him make sense of the chaos and insanity of everyday life and cultivates a sense of deep, inner calm. He hopes that his art helps you see your life and the world around you in a new way.