Pairs with:

Statement from the Artist:

I have always been working in two domains- fusing classical realism figurative sculpture, alongside a ceramics practice- clays, kilns and glazes.

When I created this 2008 piece, Riding the Wave, my practice was all about gathering lots of elements, some I had created, plus steel, wire, wood, stone, etc, and working them into larger compositions.

For Riding the Wave I wrapped a wheel in clay, waited a day, then ripped it apart into this S-curve. I was always doing things like that 20 years ago: “How can I step off the side of a cliff today?” Nothing was ever safe or predictable.

This piece’s clay elements were raku-fired which makes a great smoky finish. Unfortunately it is fragile and can never be shipped. After the pandemic I sought some sort of stability, returning to classical roots. I saw time and skill applied to these new works as an act of healing against contemporary slop.

I noticed some sculptors showing at Salmagundi Club then. I realized that a community of artists exists here who really care about getting the figure right, getting their heads and compositions and forms just right, and I wanted to be part of that. Still do.

I figured Emotion could be the way I made these busts contemporary- find an emotion that responded to our world today, and when possible an expression or emotion the old guys never would have sculpted.

So the eye roll here in None of the Above as she responds to the Tweedle-dee or Tweedle-dum choice she’s offered. Or in other recent works, a Smirk, or the expression of being fed up in Enough or Puzzled by our new world of AI. Or a startled, saddened older man in Regret.

I’m also innovating by sculpting in porcelain, which would normally be like sculpting with peanut butter, but I teamed up with a claymaker to design a unique blend. Then I used AI to formulate suitable glazes that build on ancient Chinese porcelain glaze recipes. It lets me keep current and stay connected to the past.