Seeing a Volcano for the First Time
by Carina Keirstead
Seeing a volcano for the first time, I felt great appreciation for their existence and the raw and powerful force that they are. A force that is beautiful and destructive at the same time. One that is capable of giving and taking life. They are a reminder of our place in a larger, more complex system. Sourcing magma from deep within—the heart and blood of the earth—and letting it flow out, creating something new. We have no power over this process. Earth has been creating since long before we were here, and it will continue to create long after we are gone. Things like this remind me of how lucky I am to be a part of this dynamic system that has existed for so long, and to be able to witness what can come from it. I feel that there is no better way to show my appreciation for the volcanoes I studied during the Sea to Sky Experience than to make art of them. I chose five volcanoes to represent the variety that exists in Iceland. The island’s location on the Mid-Atlantic Ridge and a hotspot result in around 130 volcanoes in an area just slightly larger than the state of Maine. My goal is to use my art to provide insight into the relationship between humans and volcanoes in Iceland. I chose to create a series of linocut relief prints because this art form provides a unique, bold look that captures the powerful essence of the landscape, and it is an art form that I enjoy. Volcanoes ignite a depth of feeling within me, reminding me that I am lucky to be alive. I in turn want to use that life to create, just as the earth does, in a way that I find to be meaningful.
Fagradalsfjall is a volcanic system on the Reykjanes Peninsula, southwest of Reykjavik. This system consists of a series of fractures, called fissures, that lava erupts from. Activity in this area started increasing in 2019 with swarms of earthquakes that caused damage to homes and disrupted the lives of people living in the nearby town of Grindavik. A series of eruptions began in 2021 and have continued ever since, spewing lava over homes and encroaching on the parking lot of the Blue Lagoon. As the system remains active, scientists continue to monitor and study it to mitigate risks.
Hekla, nicknamed the Gateway to Hell, is a stratovolcano located in the southern section of the Eastern Volcanic Zone. Stratovolcanoes typically have steep slopes and are made up of alternating layers of magma and tephra. Hekla is considered to be one of the most active volcanoes in Iceland and its eruptions have a history of being destructive and explosive, causing lasting damage to settlements and giving it its nickname.
Eldfell, meaning Hill of Fire, is an embryonic volcanic cone located on Heimaey, the main island of the Vestmannaeyjar archipelago. On January 23rd in 1973, the volcano erupted without warning, forcing everyone to temporarily evacuate. Homes were destroyed and much of the island was covered in thick layers of ash. However, after the eruption, the majority of the island’s population returned and found uses for the deposited ash and abundant geothermal heat.
Eyjafjallajokull is a subglacial volcano in the Eastern Volcanic Zone, close to the southern shores. Subglacial volcanoes can be explosive due to the interactions between hot lava and the cold ice above it. The high temperature interactions from these eruptions create meltwater floods called jokulhlaups. These floods can inundate large areas of land, destroying infrastructure and farms along the way. Eyjafjallajokull’s most recent eruption, in 2010, produced a jokulhlaup that required around 800 people to evacuate. The eruption also disrupted air travel across northern and western Europe due to its vast atmospheric clouds of volcanic ash.
Krafla is a volcanic system located in the Northern Volcanic Zone. The central volcano of this system has a caldera, which forms when a magma chamber empties and the center of the volcano falls in on itself due to a lack of support. Between 1724 and 1729, lava flows from Krafla destroyed three farms. Since 1977, the area has been used as a source for geothermal energy.