Past, Present or Future?

What's the difference between memories and ideas? Both are totally imaginary. One is a series of impressions about an event that we think has happened before. The other is a series of impressions of something that we think has not happened yet. The further into the past or ruture you try to see, the fuzzier the thought becomes.

"Mask of Memory" is a mixed media sculpture that evolved from a series of sketches. I created a form of a face, then created three different masks from that form. With some additional modifications, I assembled the three together and painted with a variety of pigments and polymer finishes to get an iridescent effect.

Exploring Personal Mythology Through Sketches and Sculpture

There is a process for creating 3-dimensionl art. I don't always follow it. Or, more accurately, the process changes with each piece, depending on how the idea evolves. "Birdman" is a working title because I do not yet know what the final form of this work will be. I have several ideas, but I'm keeping my options open.

These images document the evolution of the project so far. It is an ongoing exploration of the symbols from my personal mythology. What exists in the mind’s eye will be realized in the physical world.

View fullsize

View fullsize

View fullsize

View fullsize

View fullsize

View fullsize

View fullsize

View fullsize

View fullsize

View fullsize

View fullsize

View fullsize

View fullsize

The Persistence of Rivers

Rivers and river canyons have been a recurring theme through my 40 years of painting and sculpture. It started while driving the Kancamagus Highway along the Swift River in New Hampshire. One sketch led to another.

The twisting, converging tributaries recur throughout nature: tree structures, root systems, arteries, appendages and antlers.

River sketch 1977

Canyon Layers, ceramic 1984

Fragile Surface, reductive 5-color block print 1985

River sketch, 1975

Rivers are a primal configuration symbolizing connectivity and confluence. To explore a river is to follow each tributary to its source, then find your way back to the main river channel.  

I’ve never followed a duplicate tributary. Each is unique. The exploration, like jazz, is a journey to the origin of the passage and then to abstraction before returning to the central theme. At the source, you understand another perspective, a new insight of the passage.  

River canyons carve passages through time. It is such and fundamental theme from which to tell a story – once upon a time....

Canyon in Three Parts, plaster 1986

Canyon in Three parts (detail)

Man Turning into Sky

See a video of the finished sculpture.

This piece is still in progress. It started a few weeks ago as a quick graphite and watercolor sketch. I know instantly it would have to become three dimensional. I've been exploring sculpture for several months. This in not new territory. In the early 1980s I did a number of dioramas and free-standing sculptures. I always found it far more engaging to work with images in real space.

After the first sketch came a series of variations in graphite. Once I committed to creating the sculpture, I also decided to take my time and enjoy the process. The sculpture was build from left to right. The base rock was cut from layers of plywood. Next was a brass rod structure to provide a rigid armature for the body. The skeletal structure was added as a construction of wire and rigid cardboard to establish proportions. That was bent and twisted countless times as the two dimensional sketch began to find its spacial form.

The head, chest, pelvis, arm, wing, and legs each move on a different axis. As the body was formed from corrugated cardboard, the final pose took shape. At this point, I was still building left to right. The leg positions were still being changed every time I looked at it. The sculpture did not stand up until the legs were in place. The balance was finally established

Once the legs were finalized, I had to solve the cloud problem. I did not know what material I would use or how I would make it stable enough to last. Experiments with assorted fabrics and media resulted in a cloud-like look that is very rigid.

Creating the surface and attaching the clouds are the final steps. As this reaches completion, I now have a model for additional watercolors.

This piece and its component stages will all be on display for the Portland Open Studios Tour on October 10, 11, 18 and 18.

Visit my studio during those days to see this and other characters in development.

Portland Open Studios Tour 2015

Stepping into a Void - Mixed media

I have been included in the Portland Open Studios Tour 2015 - my second year on the tour. This year, I'll be displaying my newest venture into sculpture. After months of painting characters who are all part of the narrative that is in my head, I decided to create some of these characters in three dimension.

Please visit my studio October 10,11,17 or 18 to see what's been going on.

Guidebooks available!

Email me to reserve a copy of the 2015 Tour Guide - $15 for a complete list of all 106 artists. Also available at New Seasons Markets.