Current Work
Herald arose from a desire to further explore the combination of cast iron and kozo paper as I had done while creating Skin. The construction of Herald was very similar to that of Skin, however, knowing that I wanted Herald to be larger and have a more complicated form, I created a welded steel armature for the sculpture.
On top of the armature, wax rods were woven together until the appearance of clustered, tangled vines was attained. The entire sculpture was brushed with a thin coat of molten wax to give it a bark-like texture, then cast in iron. Kozo paper was then applied to the surface in the same manner as Skin.
The sculpture, which measures 16 inches tall, twists around itself without touching. The vine cluster grows thinner as it ascends and then cascades down, spiraling around itself. The form culminates in a flower/leaf that is deep and trumpet-like in shape. From the trumpet emerge three seeds that are long teardrop-shaped versions of oculus seeds which have been made from pecan wood. Creating the seeds in wood was something that I had not previously attempted, however it seemed like a natural outgrowth of adding wood to my visual language. The seeds were turned on a lathe and then carved slightly before being smoothed and oiled. The plant form appears to be shooting the oculus seeds out of its trumpet, perhaps announcing the arrival of spring.
The base for the piece was cut from a large slab of pecan wood that came from the same tree as the wood used for the oculus seeds, thus creating a connection between the two elements.
