on current works 2009 – 2010

My pieces are often a conglomeration of unrelated ideas that somehow just seem to work together—I try to think about a series of disjointed or unrelated things and place them in new relationships to each other. My work includes brightly glazed surfaces that meander over odd collections of thrown and hand-formed pieces with mold-made objects thrown into the mix. My current obsession with the “bunny form” has led to a series of pieces reminiscent of large figurative cartoons. I am not really sure why the bunny came to the forefront in my work at this time, although there is quite a lot of rodentia* being depicted in popular arts and culture these days.

I have recently begun a series of “cars.” I call them cars because they consist of a block or body element and have a passenger figure and (naturally) wheels or wheel forms. But the resemblance to a car ends there. This work is my current reaction to the drive-thru approach to modern life. I find it amazing to think how, in many ways, the automobile, which should bring a sense of mobility and freedom, – is responsible for the isolated way we live our daily lives. Beginning in the 1950’s the automobile defines our modern American culture. It sets the standard for how we perceive ourselves in terms of our economic status and our social standing, yet the ubiquitous auto and its impact upon our civilization, industrial and financial system may also be part of our ultimate undoing. I attempt to unify these disparate ideas in decorating the surfaces of these sculptures. I try to approach the images by coming from an angle somewhere between a graphic novel illustration, graffiti, and a roadside billboard somewhat of a visual pun, placing the graffiti that we drive by on the freeway onto the vehicle we use in life’s travels.

Ultimately I see my work as figurative. I go through my day looking at inanimate objects, perceiving them to be looking back at me. In my mind’s eye, it is easy for me to stick arms and legs on an everyday object and make it twirl around and dance. Because of this way of viewing the world around me, I feel as if I have a connection to the animistic perception of the world of our ancestors, where all the rocks are alive and we can hear the voice in the thunder.

The act of spontaneous creation, when the artist creates a piece with no limitations or preconceptions, is very important. We can move through a fantasy world where we are not limited by what is possible but rather free to explore the impossible without the restraints of what is probable. So with disregard for the troublesome world we live in, I prefer to make art that can carry one away from our day-to-day lives and allow us to dream.

* Rodentia

A large group of mammals which include mice, rats, beavers, muskrats, porcupines, woodchucks, chipmunks, squirrels, prairie dogs, bunnies, etc…

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