sculpture
It has always been my contention that the most successful works of art are those, which create an inseparable marriage between the medium, the processes and the idea. When this balance is achieved the work seems to exist in a dimension where questions of meaning, material, and technique seem superfluous, a dimension independent of time and space. The difficulty for the artist is finding that subtle but profound balance.
In my work the effort to obtain this equilibrium is achieved by forming a generalized concept then allowing the medium, as well as every other component of the creative process, to have a maximum impact upon the development of the image. This paradigm requires continual exploration and experimentation as essential elements. To a certain extent my role as the artist is akin to that of a musical conductor, responding to each element in an attempt to wed them into an harmonious composition.
My recent work has sought to explore the relationship of passing (both physically and spiritually) from one existence into another. This interest has been spurred by the recent quest of the Balseros (the Cuban rafters who have been seeking sanctuary in the United States). Although I am interested in their particular plight, I began to see them more as representatives of a continuing aspect of our collective human mythology, which requires and rewards a physical journey (often over a body of water) in order to obtain a new level of consciousness and/or physical existence. In many respects I see this quest as analogous to the making of art; for one begins with trepidation but possesses a hope that the end will justify the journey. The original objectives and intentions are soon tempered by the various obstacles and difficulties encountered along the way; upon completion, an entirely new reality emerges.
Aesthetically, attempting to achieve a visual balance between the dominance of imposed order and the chaos of complete freedom fascinates me. I am not concerned in finding any ultimate resolution, but dig deeper into the moment of exchange when one force becomes the other. I am reminded of the statement by the 16th Century French essayist Michel de Montaigne; "The excitement of the chase is properly our quarry; we are not to be pardoned if we carry it on badly or foolishly. To fail to seize the prey is a different matter. We are born to search after the truth; to possess it belongs to a greater power."