Cannon Mountain
Franconia, New Hampshire
Relief of Cannon Mountain, the steep White Mountain face rising above Franconia Notch, carved in hard maple and walnut. The carving traces exposed ridges, abrupt grade changes, and long fall lines across the mountain face. Laser-etched treelines clarify passage and pitch across the exposed mountain face.
Shaping of Place
Cannon Mountain rises from Franconia Notch, a steep northern Appalachian landscape shaped by bedrock, glaciation, weather, and exposure. Conway Granite underlies much of Franconia Notch, formed roughly 180 million years ago when Jurassic magma cooled slowly beneath the surface. Glacial ice later deepened and widened the notch, scouring the mountain's surface and helping create the sharp valley walls, exposed faces, and abrupt terrain visible today.
Cannon's identity is tied to pitch, exposure, and consequence. Weather moves directly across the face, changing snow, ice, and visibility from day to day. Steep angles and exposed terrain make conditions immediate, so the mountain reads differently with each season. Bedrock and ice give Cannon its structure; weather continually redefines how that structure is experienced.
Cannon Mountain relief, full composition.
Relief depth from ridgeline to valley.
Laser-etched ski routes.
Inverse relief detail.
Created for a friend who patrols Cannon, this piece was shaped by a working relationship with the mountain. For him, Cannon is weather, responsibility, terrain assessment, and care for the people moving across it.
The carving was kept as direct as the mountain feels. Cannon’s steep transitions and exposed faces were preserved in the relief, with hard maple chosen for horizontal grain that runs from ridge to base.
The trails were etched as passages through the face. The usable lines remain limited and specific, held within the larger mountain form.
Artist's Note