Milled aluminum tire from NASA Mars Rover, hematite rocks, artificial plants and photo.
9 x 9 x 8 inches

Commissioned by NASA, Mars Exploration Program, Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Pasadena, CA.

E.V. Day visited the Jet Propulsion Laboratory to learn about the Mars Exploration Rovers. She so intrigued the Mars scientists that she was given a sample rover wheel to work with in creating a piece of art titled "Wheel of Optimism" for NASA. Day took the wheel and created a Martian world within it complete with organic plant life, rocks and a Martian landscape in the background. Day poetically grapples with the age-old question of whether life on Mars exists or whether it is just a figment of our science fiction imagination.