Artist statement
I find immense satisfaction welding larger-than-life figurative sculptures for the wall out of hand-bent steel rod. Inspired by classical paintings of female form, I subvert the compact packaging of women inside a box and burst my subjects onto the wall in their full immensity, yet still reference edge to focus on their larger, softer forms. Endlessly drawn to the human condition, I use expressive gestures to give vitality to my subjects using tactfully placed line and negative space, leaving room for the viewer to recognize their own personal selves in the women I create.
I choose steel to emulate softness because it speaks to the alchemizing all humans must do with what we are imparted by our upbringing into whom we ultimately choose to be. Once completed, these pieces are exposed to the elements where they begin to rust, paralleling the same oxidative process that happens to humans as we age and enhance. Omitting faces provides these women anonymity, avoiding confrontation that would give them a solid identity and thus a separation from others. Bending the steel rod by hand directs my own energy into each piece, and using my intuition to lead me to each next line lets me tune into the human collective, allowing all viewers to access these works on a personal level.
We all have a feminine side, and in tuning into universal femininity and collective humanity through my process and via the use of my chosen material, the viewer is left with the opportunity to connect deeper to their own humanness and further understand the depth of its dimension.
I choose steel to emulate softness because it speaks to the alchemizing all humans must do with what we are imparted by our upbringing into whom we ultimately choose to be. Once completed, these pieces are exposed to the elements where they begin to rust, paralleling the same oxidative process that happens to humans as we age and enhance. Omitting faces provides these women anonymity, avoiding confrontation that would give them a solid identity and thus a separation from others. Bending the steel rod by hand directs my own energy into each piece, and using my intuition to lead me to each next line lets me tune into the human collective, allowing all viewers to access these works on a personal level.
We all have a feminine side, and in tuning into universal femininity and collective humanity through my process and via the use of my chosen material, the viewer is left with the opportunity to connect deeper to their own humanness and further understand the depth of its dimension.