Might look like a kinda cuitsie little thing, but it’s not. As usual the photography is extraordinary because it’s so shit, no surprises there.
Might look like a kinda cuitsie little thing, but it’s not. As usual the photography is extraordinary because it’s so shit, no surprises there.
The idea behind “Growth Rings” lies in the world of particle physics, specifically string theory, and also the interconnected nature of things.
In line with string theory, “Growth Rings” is compiled from individual rings representing some of the elementary particles of our universe such as quarks. Those rings in turn are interconnected to make something more complex. And so on this interconnection continues with the rings providing the foundation for ever more complex growth, structure & form.
I’m not entirely clear on how many permutations there are in compiling this sculpture, but it’s likely quite a few hundred.
The Gate Post v2.0 is a surrealist interpretation, and partly a social commentary, regarding a real or perceived loss or invasion of privacy by various governmental and corporate bodies in the digital era.
Whether it’s about data collection to save us from terrorism or data collection to foist products upon us, one thing is clear, in the digital world privacy is becoming a scarce commodity.
The inspiration to make this piece came from many places; however, it was the old adage of ‘Between you, me and the gate post’ that ultimately became the main driving force.
The piece also serves as a cautionary tale, whereby an anticipation of secrecy of things, communicated in confidence, may not always be guaranteed.
The full size version.
In the first instance, You Me Us is a highly contemplative abstraction about human relationships and serves to personify the harmony and emotional connectivity within the relationship. Additionally, it serves to entangle the observer into this relationship through empathic contemplation.
In part, the inspiration for this piece comes from the famous quote from the 18th century German philosopher Immanuel Kant.
“Out of the crooked timber of humanity no straight thing was ever made.”
In considering the underlying reality of what he said, with respect to the flaws that we all have, flaws that are explicitly expressed within the sculpture, it seems to me that the harmony is all the more extraordinary.
A secondary feature of this style of work that people may observe is that of pareidolia. Generally this is unique to the observer and provides for an enhanced experience with the piece.
Well, I think this one is best kept in here considering the conceptual nature of the piece. This is my first “collaboration” with Tony who knocked up the bulk of the polished stainless steel work and he’s done a bloody spectacular job at that. In short, I put together all of the woodwork, a little bit of stainless in the seat and base & Tony was left to go fully sick with the rest of the metal work. After that there’s only one thing left so say, and that is ding a ding dang my dang a long ling long.
Hopefully have it finished in a couple of days 27-01-17. The wood is Grey Gum (aka Organic Concrete) and I’ve included some sapwood, it’ll be interesting to see how the colours pull up after it’s finished. So I finished it a day early. I’ll leave the interpretation of the piece up to you.
This was an award winning piece in 2016.
I completely forgot to take any pictures of this when I was making it, these are the best I can do.
There’s nothing particularly deep and meaningful about the piece other than remarking on the adage that there are two sides to every story. The wood it’s made from is Crows Ash.
© 2021 Crooked Timber