I decided to create a second piece for next month’s “It’s all About The Story” show. When scrolling through our guest poet, Jeffery Beam’s work, a second short poem caught my attention. It is simply titled The Whale.
I love creating sculptures of these mammoth marine mammals. I’m not sure what the pull on my imagination is. Perhaps it is the juxtaposition of something that is both hulking and graceful? Or, maybe it is how they are entwined into so many stories and mythologies? What ever the reason, I have returned to the whale several times. Ironically, one time I steered away from whales was for a Herman Melville inspired show. I figured there would be enough cetaceans in attendance there.
Not A White Whale
My whale piece is titled, “Bubbling Leviathan”. Like whale themselves, I find the word leviathan intriguing. Somehow, it strikes me as one of those words that sounds like what it is, large and hulking. Unfortunately, it is also usually equated as dark, sinister, or even evil. I didn’t want my leviathan to be evil, so I encorporated something light and bubbly. Literally bubbles, or more specifially the feeding technique of creating bubble nets that humpback whales use. Humpbacks blow bubbles from their blowhole while turning in a circle as the swim upward. This concentrates the small krill that they feed on within the bubbly enclosure as the whale swims upward with its mouth open.
My Leviathan is embellished with swirling gold patterns, glass elements, and metalic embroidery. I was striving to meld the natural and mythological I find combined in these creatures. Glass beads are suspended above and trail off the whale creating the illusion of movement and spinning of the bubble net. The sculpture is suspended from a thin bamboo ring. A spiral connector, and metalic ring complete the hanging connection.
Bubbling Leviathan will be at The Hillsborough Gallery of Arts starting February 10th.
Not A Whale
I took some time this week to do a little wet felting. I tried the technique where you wrap a resist object, a balloon in this case, with some yarn first. Then I layered white and black wool. After wet felting, and popping the balloon, the resulting form was turned inside out to reveal that the yarn was incorporated into the felt as well. I worked the top edge a bit with my needles to create a finished edge. I had originally planned for this wet felt to become a bag, but I worked it into such a nice spherical shape, that it screamed to be left alone. My most trusted art critics agreed with this creative choice. So, Vessel # 12 it is. This piece will show up at HGA as soon as I get a chance to add it to inventory and drop it off.
Valentines?
I have a small selection of my hand pulled gel mono-print cards in floral and heart designs available at the gallery. Sketching a few other ideas. I’ll let you know if I come up with anything else.
