Being connected to modern culture requires a certain amount of screen time. You and I, in order to share these musings, which are surely worthwhile, have to spend time on a device. The paradox of our reality is that, the more time we spend in this two dimensional, textureless yet very real place, the less time we spend interacting with our neighbors and our local, three dimensional environment. What do we do when we need to remember to get out of the box?
My cats remind me by snuggling up to me at the keyboard, rumbling, enticing me with a friendly purr. My husband and friends remind me when it’s time to go to the store, or hang out, or take a walk. Then there are those quiet moments that we long for: at the beach, in our backyard gardens, climbing a mountain. There are also moments brought to us by art. At a museum, in our own homes, in community spaces, physical art, especially sculpture, reminds us of our desperate need for texture, touch and connection. It helps us get out of our shell.
Placuna Anima Maris (Oyster Soul of the Sea), Rowan Mersh and Bob Lorimer. Photo Credit Frankie Pike
I’d like to share the immensely beautiful and exquisitely textured art of Rowan Mersh with you. The irony of sharing pictures of physical art online does not escape me, but the beauty of the internet is that it can show us things that would not enter our normal day to day lives.
Rowan Mersh is a multi-media sculptor living in London. A graduate of the Royal College of Art, he has created a variety of work, from kinetic and interactive installations to textile sculptures. Today I will concentrate on his work with shells.
Asabikeshiinh V
Asabikeshiinh V detail
Mersh slices the shells, which are sustainably harvested, grinds and polishes them and reassembles them by hand into structures and patterns which he then coats with a fluorocarbon resin that preserves and fuses the piece. It’s a painstaking process; the larger pieces take months to create. These Doxander vittatus shells, common name Vitate Conch, look as delicate as lace. I love the way Asabikeshiinh V seems to flow and move. Do you see a school of fish, or maybe tropical foliage?
Asabikeshiinh II. Photo Credit Frankie Pike.
Asabikeshiinh II detail. Photo Credit Frankie Pike.
As the shells fit together, they determine the design of the piece. The turritella shells in the piece above were laid with the largest in the center and the smallest at the outer edge. Asabikeshiinh II recalls the graphic designs of M.C. Escher, but with the magical addition of texture. Seen up close, it looks remarkably like a lace textile.
Asabikeshiinh IV
Asabikeshiinh IV
Here’s another variation on the theme, this one resembling a light and airy chrysanthemum in full bloom. Does it surprise you that asabikeshiinh is an Ojibwe word for “spider? The legend of the Spider Woman who protects the Ojibwe people tells that, as the Ojibwe became scattered across North America, the Spider Woman instructed women to construct dream catchers to filter out bad dreams and hold them until the sun could destroy them. I knew this legend only vaguely through commercial efforts to sell tourist goods and trendy healing products. Mersh’s works seem to reclaim some of the dignity and significance of the original story. Can you see the webs?
Asabikeshiinh Praegressus shows the evolution, or progression of the dreamcatcher idea. This time, Mersh has allowed the form to curve in on itself, creating a sort of nest or basket. The turritella shells here look more plantlike, almost like reeds, but still retain their weblike pattern.
Placuna Pro Dilectione Mea II
Placuna Pro Dilectione Mea II detail
Placuna Pro Dilectione Mea II detail
Placuna Pro Dilectione Mea II looks as if it is made of soft feathers, but it is actually made of the shells of the windowpane oyster, the same shells that we often see in windcatchers. The hard, brittle, transparent discs, also known as Capiz Shell, are abundant in the Philippines and Southeast Asia. The title translates Oyster(shell)s for My Love.
Turitella Duplicata II
Turitella Duplicata II detail
Turitella Duplicata II detail
Returning to the turritella shells, Duplicated Turitella II leaves them mostly whole, sticking out like some strange sea plant or perhaps a nappy animal pelt. The closer you get, the sharper and more amazing the spines look. An illusion of motion is created by gradually varying the angle of the shells. Mersh’s talent for shaping, which involves thinking of each shell as a painter would think of a brushstroke, is astounding.
Pithváva Praegressus I detail
Pithváva Praegressus I
Pithváva is a deity of the Yurok people of the California coast. He created the dentalium, or “tooth” shell, considered by the Yurok to be sacred. Dentalium shells were frequently traded among First Nations People. This piece is an exploration of both the dentalium and the god, a physical representation that is almost kachina-like in its significance. It is Rowan Mersh’s connection between his material, the natural world and the metaphysical legends of the past that give his work not only beauty, but a reverant resonance. You long to reach out and touch it, and through it to connect to nature and the past.
All images used in accordance with Fair Use Policy for educational purposes. Please spend some time on Rowan Mersh’s amazing website, where he has many more pictures and works to share.
These are the ten most viewed articles written in 2016. I am excited that many of them involve experiences and works from our synkronicitiOpen Mics, which were happening once a month until our house flooded in April. I am looking forward to starting them up again sometime in 2017. I miss my tribe!
Nature is a great source of inspiration for creatives of all types. Lina Cofán takes a whimsical look at cacti.
Lina Cofán was working as a performance and theater based artist in Berlin when she decided to move back to Spain and pursue an interest in ceramic sculpture. The majority of her pieces are plants, specifically cacti. Cacti come in a wealth of textures and shades of green to which Cofán adds her imagination and skill. The result is simply enchanting.
Cofán’s creations are life size, rendered with playful ridges in glowing greens that delight the eye. From barrel shaped to tall saguaro, from prickly pear to pincushion, these quirky cacti have an astonishing amount of personality.
Please check out Lina Cofán’s website. I hope to see and learn more about this talented artist in the future.
I love making photoblogs! Researching, putting together images and writing an article take quite a bit of time, but the process is truly rewarding. I have learned about so many wonderful artists and disciplines that I might never have encountered otherwise.
Most of my photoblogs were from the first half of 2015 and they were very popular. Here are the ten posts that received the most views plus one of my favorites. Thanks for looking and reading. I will have more of these for you in 2016!
When creative pathways become blocked most of us give up or force ourselves forward. What if we changed direction instead?
Peter Gentenaar was originally a printmaker who became dissatisfied with the effects he could produce with commercial paper. He decided to try his hand at making his own. In the process, he created a new beater to process paper pulp and discovered effects that put him on a new artistic path.
The paper Gentenaar created has extremely long fibers that twist like leaves as it dries. This might not be great for making prints, but by attaching the paper to bamboo frames he is able to exert some control over the form the paper takes. Learning how the paper shrinks as it dries has allowed Gentenaar to create incredible three dimensional sculptures, quite unusual and lovely.
All of these pictures are from the 25th anniversary of the classical music festival at Saint-Riquier Abbey in Picardie, France and are used in accordance with fair use policies.
Patrick Dougherty builds fantastic nest and hut forms from saplings, fusing sculpture and crafting with architecture. After designing a project, he recruits people to help him with construction, teaching them how to weave and work with sticks. Inviting the public to be involved in the joy of creation is a wonderful way to spread the word about a new installation and give the community a sense of ownership and participation in the art. Materials are drawn from local plants which are often grown and harvested specifically for the project.
Over the years, Dougherty has built more than 250 installations all over the world. He describes his creations as “whimsical, ephemeral, and impermanent”. You might see a striking resemblance to illustrations by Dr. Seuss. Parts of us which we put away when we grew up into serious adults start to thaw out and wake up in the presence of this kind of whimsy. Why do we insist on being so serious?
Last January, Dougherty built Boogie Woogie in Hermann Park, here in Houston, from saplings of Chinese tallow. Chinese tallows are ubiquitous here, accounting for almost a fourth of all trees in Houston (Wikipedia). These quick growing and weak trees, despite their pretty leaves, are invasive and it is actually illegal to sell, distribute or import them in Texas. I’m constantly pulling them out of my garden. They are perfect for this kind of application, because no one will miss them.
Boogie Woogie is designed to look like an ancient glyph or symbol when viewed from above. I really enjoy the variable height of the roof, with its dramatic slopes. You can see the sky quite easily through that lightly woven roof, which makes being inside even more magical.
This is a lovely video featuring Pomp and Circumstance, an installation built in 2011 at Oregon State University in Corvallis, Oregon. It is part of the Inspired By… series by Shwood Eyewear, which presents artists and creatives operating in the Pacific Northwest, and was filmed by Gary Tyler Mcleod and Austin Will. They did a wonderful job of capturing the humble and generous spirit of Dougherty and his work, which never ceases to draw you in.
Video via Shwoodshop on YouTube.
I am fascinated by the value of illusion here. First of all, the eye is fooled into believing the nests are lighter and more fragile than they are. In fact, Dougherty’s goal is to make something that looks simple and haphazard despite the complexity and sturdiness of the weave. His work is inviting rather than intimidating. The Monk’s Cradle below looks as if it will collapse at any moment, but it is completely stable.
Secondly, Dougherty creates spaces that suggest an alternate reality to our modern, computer driven society. From inside one of his nests you get the feeling that the world is a playful, imaginative place. You can imagine leaving normal life behind to wander and cavort here indefinitely. It reminds me of my childhood playhouse, which was an a-frame design built from scrap plywood. It wasn’t nearly as cool, but it gave me a similar feeling. Dougherty does a wonderful job of cultivating enchantment and contagious joy, evident in both the construction and exhibition phase of his creations. It makes me want to go out and play. Put your shoes on; the last one outside is a rotten egg!
It is human to fear things that make us feel uncertain. How can art help us to befriend those fears?
Figure from Milky Way
The surface of the Earth is the shore of the cosmic ocean. On this shore, we’ve learned most of what we know. Recently, we’ve waded a little way out, maybe ankle-deep, and the water seems inviting. Some part of our being knows this is where we came from. We long to return, and we can, because the cosmos is also within us. We’re made of star stuff.
―Carl Sagan, Cosmos
Mihoko Ogaki, born in Toyama, Japan and educated at the Kunstakademie Dusseldorf in Germany, is fascinated by the interplay of darkness and light. In her continuing series Milky Way, Ogaki sculpts human figures from fiber-reinforced plastic. These figures are all in the final stages of death, age and pain dominating their features. Left in that state, these would be deeply depressing sculptures, but Ogaki embeds each one with bright LEDs that recreate the patterns of the stars of our Milky Way Galaxy. The effect is enchanting and lovely, as these dark forms are transfigured into illuminating presences, each giving back their light to the universe around them. The concepts of soul, energy, and eternity dance before us, mysterious as ever.
The First Law of Thermodynamics states that energy can be changed from one form to another, but it cannot be created or destroyed. The implications for the conscious and unconscious parts of the human being can’t be quantified. We can’t see in the dark, nor can we truly see what death is until we experience it. In both cases, the obscurity can be frightening, even if we have faith on which to lean. There is more going on than we can understand or even perceive.
Ogaki’s magical sculptures capture the beauty and interconnectedness of light and darkness and of life and death without explaining their mysteries or interpreting their meaning. They hint at synchronicity, at a promise of meaning, which is comforting. We need artists to dream and explore these universal issues as much as we need scientists and philosophers to do so.
All images used in accordance with Fair Use Policy for educational and analytical purposes.
Our experience of home deepens and changes with time. Does moving away from our roots help us understand them better?
Blueprint
Do-ho Suh grew up fascinated by the sea. His dream was to become a marine biologist and study the movements and migrations of fish. Unfortunately, his math scores were not up to par to enter that field of study, so he followed in the footsteps of his father, the famous Se-ok Suh, gaining Bachelor’s and Master’s degrees in Oriental Painting from Seoul University. Although he did reasonably well, he didn’t really find his voice, perhaps because his father’s success made it difficult for him to establish his own identity. He did, however, fall for a fellow art student. When she moved to the United States for further study, so did he. The Rhode Island School of Design accepted Do-ho Suh, but only as a sophomore. He found it difficult to get into the classes he wanted to take, but decided to take a course in sculpture instead. There he found his medium. After graduating, he would continue sculpting as a Master’s student at Yale, building a preference for styrofoam, resin and fabric as opposed to more traditional materials.
Seoul Home
Living in New York City was a different experience from living in Seoul, although both are crowded cities. Suh found it extremely difficult to sleep in New York due to the noise and often desired the serenity of his parent’s home. He wished he could bring that sense of peace with him and had the idea of constructing a portable model of his parent’s house out of fabric. This was the inspiration for a whole array of installations, beginning with Seoul Home. His mother helped him find fabric, which was then dyed to the color of jade, and put him in touch with traditional seamstresses that could help him realize his vision and teach him how to sew. He is constantly building on and transforming the concepts of home, homeland and the past. This video is a wonderful capsule of his work.
Video via Chloe Boleyn Palmer on YouTube.
Do-ho Suh is frequently on the move. It is interesting to note that he has, in a sense, become like a fish, migrating from one place to another for opportunity and growth. The colors and textures of his pieces are akin to those of the coral reef.
Perfect Home
His interest in home does not only manifest in the creation of ethereal models of his former and current residences, but takes in other forms that contrast his modern, global identity with his traditional, Korean one. What a fascinating and thoughtful artist, capable of poetic recreation of space and memory!
Specimen Series Toilet
Want more?
You can read the full interview from which the video was made here.
Today Suh lives in London, but he is still haunted by his former homes. Recently he has taken to making rubbings of his former New York studio, adding a deeply sensual element to his work. You can read about that here.
All images are used in accordance with Fair Use Policy for educational and analytical purposes.
What follows is a gallery of art selected from the output of three outstanding artists, Sue Coccia, Athena Jahantigh and Rex Homan. I selected them not only because of their imaginative artwork, but because these artists also have great connections to native traditions. Clicking on the name of the artist will take you to their website. An internet search will turn up plenty of sites that explain what certain animals mean, but they can’t always interpret what they hold for you. If you are interested in the archetypal significance an image has held over time, which is fascinating, this website on totems and animal symbolism provides good content without being too definitive.
All images are used in accordance with Fair Use Policy for analytical and educational purposes. The links in the captions below the pictures may lead to the artist’s description of the work and places where the art may be purchased.
Washington state native Sue Coccia’s work is particularly rich because of the number of small images which come together to form the picture as a whole. No animal exists in a vacuum, but is part of an ecosystem that includes predators, prey, competitors and environment. Elements of that ecosystem find their way into the picture, as well as spiritual connotations and associations. The Dragonflyabove is emblazoned with two eyes, symbolic of wisdom and vision. You will also find at least one lucky ladybug in each design. Whimsy and good nature radiate from these composite figures. It is as if each one blesses the viewer by accentuating the good in wildness.
Her drawings are crafted painstakingly by hand in pen and ink on watercolor paper, then painted with vibrant acrylic colors. She also makes objects for the home based on those drawings and designs the Animal Spirits series for Robert Kaufman Fabrics. The delightfulLadybugbelow is a kitchen trivet.
These fantastic images with their meticulous detail combine Coccia’s Indian heritage, her study of indigenous art, her formal art training and her love for animals to produce something that celebrates life and speaks eloquently of its complexities and interconnectedness. She’s a generous artist, who donates a portion of her income to wildlife preservation and her backyard has been designated a Backyards Wildlife Habitat by the National Wildlife Federation.
Ceramic artist Athena Jahantigh hails from Iran and holds an MFA and a Doctorate from the Sorbonne in Paris. Her sculptures recall ancient works from the cradle of civilization, fused with modern forms through a lovely sense of imagination and artistic license.
The Poetic Gazelles are inspired by artifacts found in the ruins of Shahr-e Sukhté, a Bronze Age settlement in southeastern Iran. The Gazelles are made in black faience, the clay being applied in strips from the legs up to the antlers.
Jahantigh uses the pottery, sculpture and art of her homeland to inspire her animals, but expresses what those forms evoke in her mind’s eye rather than reproducing them.
Sometimes her works are quirky and amusing, such as the series The Four Legs Without Leg. In repeating the image of four legged beasts, she one day eliminated the legs, creating a shape that differed from what she was used to making. Take a look at the long haired sheep below, recognizable by the texture of its fur and its horns. The sheep is made of white faience, most of which is glazed to create silky locks of hair.
One of Jahantigh’s strengths is her marvelous gift for texturing, honed by working in faience, which requires it due to the limited color palette. More recent experiments have led her to the medium of sandstone clay. More color variations are available, but she has grown attached to the process of texturing.
The work above is a mythological representation of New Zealand, which is called by the indigenous Maori people Te ika a Maui, or Maui’s Big Fish. The enchanting story relates that Maui was fishing one day when he pulled the island from the sea.
Rex Homan, a native New Zealander with Scottish, Irish and Maori blood, is an internationally renowned woodworker who has also worked in bronze. His sculptures, which are predominantly made of New Zealand Kauri, are enlivened by a dramatic sense of line that is able to capture figures in motion and makes even resting figures look as if they have been surprised during their usual routine. Like Jahantigh and Coccia, his works combine elements of realism with flights of fantasy, expressing the sublime and the vulnerable in the natural world.
Homan’s sculptures are so dynamic that they look completely different from different angles. You really need to walk around them to get the full impact. For that reason I have included more than one image of each piece.
Kaka is a bush parrot that was once common but is now an endangered species. The Kotuku, known in other countries as the Great White Heron or Egret, is now scarce in New Zealand. This seems even more tragic when you understand that, in Maori myth, Kotuku are the guardians that guide the dead Maori home to the world of their ancestors.
Punga is a figure in Maori mythology. He is the father of rays, sharks, lizards and all ugly, nasty or strange animals. If a person is deemed ugly, nasty or strange, he or she may be called Te aitanga a Punga, the child of Punga. Homan’s sculpture of him is a reinterpretation of this character, one that tells us to look deeper. There is beauty in him, even if we fail to see it because of fear or prejudice. It’s human nature to malign what we do not understand.
Homan’s uncle bequeathed him this beautiful piece of kauri wood. It was too flat to become a bird, so it became a Whai, or Stingray. In keeping with the spirit of the piece, Homan made something beautiful from a piece of wood that was deemed useless.
Simplifying and smoothing the image into a fluid combination of lines, angles and curves creates figures of striking power. It is as if Homan recognized the craftsmanship already present both in the animal being represented and the block of wood being used and honored them with his own creative stroke.
The Kiwi, an icon of New Zealand, evolved alongside dinosaurs, but some people predict it will be extinct in thirty years. In the tradition of artists such as John James Audubon, Homan is a splendid advocate for the species he records in his marvelous work. Art can be a great force for conservation and empathy with our animal brethren.
Sun-Hyuk Kim makes sculptures that mimic roots and explore the meaning of being human, imbuing humanity and nature with dignity.
The Way to Happiness II
It is important to treat our roots and the roots of others with respect. Sometimes we get so wrapped up in learning and comprehension that we forget dignity and empathy. Art can help us by providing a mirror so that we may examine what lies inside of us without dissecting ourselves and those we hope to understand. We do not have to lay ourselves bare and open to the world in order to explore our inner selves, although some of us will choose to do so.
Naked Portrait 1
The Way to Happiness IV
I make a constant effort to achieve my dream in the present. I want to say through my artwork what [the] human being is in the natural world. Everyday, anywhere I [am I] realize that we are so little compare[d] to the works of God. So I seek the smallest artist under the sky.
–Sun-Hyuk Kim
A Twig
Naked Portrait Number 2
Sun-Hyuk Kim received a Master’s Degree from the University of Seoul in 2011 and has already had two solo exhibitions, Drawn by Lifeand Simple Truth as well as many group exhibitions. His work combines imagination, gentleness and whimsy that communicates easily without words of explanation. The deep reverence underlying his work allows him to communicate about things of delicate and sensitive nature, such as aspiration, fear and discontent. It is his goal to eliminate the artificial modern concept of man as separate from nature.
I hope you enjoy his beautiful and perceptive work as much as I do.
Wriggle
The Way to Happiness
Whispering
All images are used in accordance with Fair Use Policy.
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