WALL MOUNTED PIECES

In my most recent series of sculptures I have really enjoyed creating "stacked" pieces that are designed to hang on the wall. These sculptures are more "high relief" than "in the round" and hang flat against the wall like a painting. Some of the individual components are thrown - then cut in half - then finally craddled into a textured slab of clay, like the brown metallic piece here. Others, like the green sculpture, are seperate pieces just placed together in the hanging. I have also enjoyed using the metallic pigments mixed with acrylic paints to give a rich, luminescent finish to the clay. Aesthetically, I like that they need no base to support them and they can be as delicate on the bottom as on the top. These wall pieces average 24 inches in length.

ASSEMBLAGE

All my sculptural work is ASSEMBLAGE in some way. ASSEMBLAGE, a French word pronounced like collage, is a 3-dimensional form of collage in which different materials or objects are "assembled" together in one sculpture. I incorporate a wide variety of materials into my clay sculptures. Often these are found objects like small metal pieces, seed pods, leaves, or twigs. I also include some repeated objects like nails, scabble tiles, or old keys. All these pieces that are added into the sculpture have a symbolic meaning that relates to the piece as a whole. I also try to incorporate objects that will relate to the piece asthetically. I hope that with the inclusion of these objects that I am able to add more to the look and to the narrative of the piece.

JARS OF CLAY

My stacked clay sculptures are loosely base on the human form. My first stacked pieces were more literal, having obvious arms, torsos and heads. My more recent forms only suggest those things. The concept and title for this series were taken from Paul's second letter to the Corinthians in the New Testament:
But we have this treasure in jars of clay to show that this all-surpassing power is from God and not from us.

This metaphore of clay and the human body was not a new one with Paul. Genesis describes Adam as being made from the "dust of the ground." It says later in the same book "from dust you are and to dust you will return." Paul uses this metaphore in another place speaking of God and man saying "I (God) am the potter, you (man) are the clay."

My stacked clay peices are meant to show this tension between the earthy and spiritual natures we all have. Though we are made of temporary "clay" bodies there is within us all something of the eternal. I incorporate different elements, both natural and man made, into the sculpture to accent our connection to the world. I also try to hint at the sacred or eternal with other elements.

WORDS IN ART

I have always liked incorporating words into my work, I feel it adds to the narrative of an artwork. A while back I started using Scabble tiles to form the words. I like using the tiles for several reasons. First, they are nicely made of wood (they feel great in the hand) and the color and surface work well visually with the other objects I incorporate into the pieces. On a more conceptual level, I like the tiles because they represent a game (one that I enjoy) in which random tiles are organzed into words. I really like that concept of something ordered (and very visually ordered on the board) coming from randomness. I also think the use of words engages the viewers a little more with the piece, it gives them one more clue as to what that piece is about. In the box titled Frailty I wanted to arrange the tiles in a "Frail," unstable way. I think the instability of the objects in the box speaks to the frailty of life. Dust 7 (To Dust You Shall Return) also speaks of this frailty of life but more in the way of a cycle of life. In this box I use stained shards of clay as a base to give an almost archeological feel to the contents, but, even in this dismal layer of rubble there are objects of hope.

CLAY AND NATURE

I love working with clay, it is so "Earthy" - Actually, it is earth. I really like the relationship of the fired clay to natural objects like seed pods, leaves and twigs. These natural forms have a conceptual relationship with clay since they grow in and from the ground, but I also create a visual relationship with the clay in my use of shape, texture and color. I think the contents of these two boxes illustrate this well. In the bottom box there are real seed pods from the Mahogany tree in various stages of developement (I use these in different forms in many of my pieces, I think they are so evocative of life and regeneration). I combined these seed pods with high fired clay forms that have been textured and stained with oxides to give a "seed pod" like appearance. I then contrasted the earthiness of the pods and clay forms with the high polish of three round stones. The interior of the top box is more about the contrast of the soft yellow seed fluff with the almost stonelike quality of the clay seed pods. There is also a contrast between the random texture of the fluff and the ordered, geometric texture of the clay surfaces. These are some of the relationships I like to explore as I assemble my sculptures, whether boxes or free standing pieces.

These are 2 pieces that were exhibited in the Quest for Peace show at Miami Dade. The box on the right is part of a series of boxes titled "Dust" and the other piece, on the top right is a wall hanging from the series "Jars of Clay." The piece that won first place is in the earlier blog, see below. All three of these pieces incorporate Scrabble tiles to "spell out" a short message, Seeds of Peace on the lid of the box and PAX (Peace) on the bottom of the wall hanging.

QUEST FOR PEACE AWARD

In November, Miami Dade and the Kendall Chamber of Commerce sponsored a Competition/Exhibit at the campus gallery with "Quest for Peace" as the theme. I had 3 pieces selected for the show and one, "Salem, the city of Peace" won first place in Sculpture. Here is a photo of the box and a close-up.

WORKING IN CLAY

For the past year I have been trying to make a new start as an artist. After retiring from a 37 year career of teaching in the arts I decided to pursue doing my own art full time. This past January I enrolled at Miami Dade College and have worked in their clay studio almost daily for the past 12 months. In that time I have been able to produce about 45 clay sculptures working in three directions: Found boxes, freestanding stacked pieces and wall hanging pieces. All the sculptures are assemblages combining clay with other objects, natural and man made. I have shown pieces from this series at the campus Art Gallery and at a gallery space at my church, Crossbridge Church Miami. I hoping to begin showing through a gallery in the near future.

These were two early pieces:

I will be trying to set up a web site soon but until I do I will try to use this blog to post new work as it is finished.