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Salt art display featured at Weber State University

Posted at 6:38 AM, Mar 05, 2014
and last updated 2014-03-05 08:38:33-05

OGDEN, Utah -- A unique art display is being crafted at Weber State University in Ogden.

It resembles the image of a tropical storm, similar to what you would see on a satellite shot during a weather forecast. But the intricate piece of work is being crafted with ordinary table salt.

It is the vision of internationally claimed artist Motoi Yamamoto, and its title is "Floating Garden."

"We became aware of the work and we thought the connection to the Great Salt Lake, to our culture and economy around here would make it a perfect fit for us," said Visual Arts Department Chair Matt Choberta.

Yamamoto has meticulously spent more than 10 hours a day for the past week on the floor of Weber State's College of Arts and Humanities carefully crafting his vision.

In Japanese culture, salt is often used as a healing agent to aid in dealing with grief, a process Yamamoto knows all to well since the death of his sister.

"My sister died by brain cancer, brain tumor, in 1994," he said.

The Morton Salt Company was so moved by Yamamoto's idea, it donated more than 250 pounds of their famous product to use as his artistic medium.

The artwork will remain on display at Weber State for all to see until April 12, before its disbursement into the Great Salt Lake.