oil on canvas, 60cm x 60cm, 2009/2014, £250
The rugged Berserk Lava Field covers most of the western part of the municipality of Helgafellssveit, and stretches between the mountain slopes and the sea. The lava flowed from four prominent, but differently sized scoria craters* of the volcano Ljósufjöll system forming an east-west row from Kerlingarskard in the north of the Snaefellnes Peninsula.
The outbreak began in Kothraunskúla probably erupting at short intervals approximately 3600-4000 years ago, the largest one first, then the crater Rauðakúla and Gráakúla and finally the smallest crater Smáhraunakúla.
Two lakes formed during the eruption: Selvallavatn and Kothraunsvatn. Both lakes which add to the serenity and beauty of the landscape have only underground drains.
*(Scoria cones or craters, also known as cinder cones, are the most common type of volcano. They are also the smallest type, with heights generally less than 300 meters. Scoria cones are composed almost wholly of ejected basaltic tephra).
