The

Autumn of 14 Collection

“Taking Shape”

Two months have now elapsed since my return from Italy and as my third collection of Colorado Yule Marble sculpture gradually emerge from within their rough blocks I recognize a now familiar pattern of increased energy and clarity of vision, as experienced at this early stage within my two prior collections.

An interlude of almost 4 months had elapsed between carving Wolf Man Jack, the final Standing Stone of the 1314 Winter Collection, and Light Ship, pictured above – the first sculpture of my current body of work, ‘The Autumn of 14 Collection’.

After such a lengthy break it is as well to slip back into the groove of things with a sculpture of modest proportions, and I commenced carving the Autumn of 14 Collection with a design based around the concept of a humble little candle holder. It seemed appropriate.

Immediately following ‘Light Ship’ I set about carving a playful bit of whimsy in the form of ‘Nessie’, my nod to our species’ enduring fascination with the mythical beast.

‘Reverse Equation’

It was only once I set about carving the replacement for Reverse Equation that I thought I caught a glimpse of the direction in which this, my third marble collection, is about to embark. For while I intend to explore themes and ideas from the previous two collections I have no doubt an overriding theme for this collection will present itself, as was the case with ‘The Maiden Collection’, its signature Hand Carved Marble Bowls, and ‘1314 Winter Collection’ with its Curvilinear Reductionist Standing Stones.

Thankfully I had known of Reverse Equation’s inclusion in the Red Brick Art Center’s 2014 Biennial Juried Exhibition for some weeks and so I had ample time in which to carve a replacement so as not to leave the Standing Stone Circle with a gap tooth, so to speak.

I have yet to conjure words adequate to describe the complex creative/carving process that ensue once my collaboration with the marble begins. The resulting shapes, curves, shadows and markings are the direct result of imagery buried deep within my subconscious mind, and the cold hard realities of finding common ground with a 30 million year-old piece of rock.

‘Pilgrim’, the third and most recent sculpture of my Autumn of 14 Collection, presents a decidedly ghostly image and could have emerged from the Sarcophagi carvings of Pisa’s Camposanto, or conversely from the myriad of medieval ‘pilgrim’ imagery along the Camino de Santiago de Compostella… a part of which Kris, Joseph and myself have hiked. Joseph in fact went on to walk from the French border all the way to Compostella and onto Finesterre. And so, all things considered, the image of a lone pilgrim burning with an inner light may have indeed been lurking somewhere in the recess of my mind at the outset of carving this piece, but if that was the case I was not aware of it. The Pilgrim in fact announced itself by way of the markings that seemed to outline a robe of some design tied by a sash and protected by a large heavy cape, and once these details came into focus my job was but to ferret them out.

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In the coming weeks and months I will be posting ‘Home Pages’ for each of the Autumn of 14 sculptures, with the Collection’s completion scheduled for November of 2014.

But don’t forget, if you have the chance, to see ‘Reverse Equation’ while she is on view at the Red Brick Arts Center in Aspen. She will be on display from Thursday, September 4th, from the opening reception, 5 to 7 pm, through September 27th, 2014. I hope you will be able to attend the reception, see you there!