John Lewis, a man of depth, few words, and an enduring love
Ceramic, bronze colored glaze,
17″w x 12″h x 9″d
With the heavy metal workshops in the area closed by COVID, I worked daily for months on end in our garage-turned-ceramic-studio to sculpt this piece. The experience was a gift.
“GRATITUDE”
30″ x 30″ x 78″
Weathered steel, paint, inlaid roofing paper
I am an artist, albeit an aging and aspiring one. With this piece I have tried to express the lingering experience of gratitude that age and loved ones bring. Dag Hammarskjold, the deceased and former Secretary General of the United Nations, penned in words what I have tried to sculpt in steel:
“For what has been, thanks. For what will be, yes.”
“Beyond Forever.”
Ceramic, bronze glazed doves, steel base
9″ x 9″ x 8″
This was a commissioned piece to celebrate the wedding anniversary of a long married couple. Years ago the client had engraved on her husband’s wedding ring “beyond forever.” Today that sentiment lives.
When asked what kind of sculpture she had in mind, she wrote, “two ceramic doves sitting side by side with the caption Beyond Forever.”
“Why doves?” I asked.
“I love seeing my husband watch the antics of the doves as he sits quietly under our portal. Just don’t make the doves white sentimental ones that you see on wedding cakes or invitations. I want birds that are sweet and puffy and have some personality.”
“Do you want a sculpture that is abstract or one that is more realistic? I attached images of both possibilities.
This is the piece that was sculpted.
I enjoyed making this commision. It has a meaning for the couple hidden from the causal observer. That, for me, is what sculpture is all about…a way to express what is not easily seen.
What to do?
One line penned by the poet Mary Oliver has stayed with me over the years. “Tell me, “ she asks, “what is it you plan to do with your one wild and precious life?” I heard that question at age 17 when I wondered about becoming a monk. It surfaced again when I found myself, after years of study, mismatched to a profession. Then again when pondering marriage. Later still, when about to retire.
Why do I mention such times? To tell you about my self? No. I simply want to thank Mary Oliver for asking the question with which we all struggle, “What is it you plan to do with your one wild and precious life?” Answered once, it will rise again. The sculpture is a reminder.
My hope is that the stark contemporary form of the sculpture will move viewers to take a second look, to notice its small bronze bird, and be drawn to ponder Mary Oliver’s sentiment.
“The Summer Day” by Mary Oliver
I don’t know exactly what a prayer is.
I do know how to pay attention, how to fall down
into the grass, how to kneel down in the grass,
how to be idle and blessed, how to stroll through the fields,
which is what I have been doing all day.
Tell me, what else should I have done?
Doesn’t everything die at last, and too soon?
Tell me, what is it you plan to do?
“Love 2020″
Steel 18″ x 18″ x 84″
Two steel abstract forms, separate yet connected, within a city ravaged by a virus.
… aged loved ones alone … hesitant to touch …
… the absence of a kiss or embrace …
My effort to express what is beautiful within the tragic.
Imagine life as a basket filled with hundreds of balls. The basket is tipped. Someone may have pushed it over. An unexpected event may have caused the spill. Whatever the reason, the balls are scattered.
Many may think of the moment as unfortunate; others, a tragedy. Some will start to clean up the mess or put things back in the basket. A few may notice that there is a golden ball or two among the scattered. They see possibilities.
I’m willing to bet that visitors to this website are grateful for having their basket tipped over. This sculpture is about change, creativity, and life, yours and mine.
Life, An Odyssey
16″ x 24″ x 8″
Styrofoam, twigs, paper bag, foil
NFS
“Mon coeur s’ouvre à ta voix”
(My heart is open to your voice)
Weathered steel, clef is powder coated
76” x 30”. x 30”
Around the base of this piece the words and sentiments of the composer John Rutter are inscribed:
“If you could have any gift, any treasure,
taste any pleasure, what would it be?
May your soul have the gift of music.
May your heart be inspired with song.
May the echoes remain in your memory…
like a friendship that lasts your whole life long.”
Steel, 66″h x 41″w x 24″d,
My client wanted a sculpture that was personal to her, not one that was merely attractive to others or pleasant to the eye. She wanted an piece that reflected her many faceted life. It was also to be an outdoor sculpture that could be seen from her bedroom and living room. While in her seventies, she felt that her life–far from over–was still unfolding. She wanted the sculpture to reflect that experience of being unfinished and far from perfect. Looking back over her life she recognized that her varied life-experiences, while seeming separate, were all of a piece. She wanted the sculpture to reflect that experience as well. “I feel that I have learned wisdom over the years. No, the Hebrew word חוכמה captures my experience. While I’m not particularly religious I want that word incorporated into the piece. I’m not sure why. I will call the sculpture חוכמה or Sophia.”
For those who want to slow, suggestions abound. “Do this, do that.” we hear.
Chief Yellow Hawk of the Lakota Tribe had a suggestion. Listen to the sound of the wind.
In medieval times a village bell would sound at noon. Villagers dropped what they were doing. They called the devotion The “Angelus” … a reminder of an angel’s coming to announce the sacred.
This large wind chime is a sculpture that marries those traditions. It is an invitation to pause.
Angelus II
80″h x 48″w x 12″d
Steel
Villa Saint Therese Clinic
Steel
Rust patina, sprayed auto paint
66″ x 24″ x 12″
The Villa is a remarkable clinic that serves uninsured and underinsured children … from birth to eighteen years of age. They also offer limited services to adults. 95% of patients fall below the Federal Poverty Line, are uninsured, and come from immigrant families. Over 60% receive no government assistance. Services are free or very low cost for individuals having no or little insurance.
I took the logo from their stationary to sculpt this playful outdoor sculpture to help create a welcoming atmosphere for the children and their caregivers.