Right Place Right Time

Over the weekend, I went to Richard Brandt's open house. Upstairs, in Paul's realm, fine teas were being savored. Being full of and a little buzzed by Richard's Oaxaca Mexican hot chocolate, I was looking at the sculpture and art and of course at his Asian art library.

I opened the book Circle of Bliss and was dazzled by the first image. The rainbow colored deity was vibrantly alive. I just sat there stunned watching the colors change and then put the book away..... Prisms on the window had bounced light exactly onto the page but an explanation is not the experience.

The Shadow of Geppetto

Feeling miserable can be a very good thing. It's vastly overrated as a lifestyle, but a couple of days of down has let me focus on my work uninterrupted. It's has also been sunny, incredible southern light plays across my workbench all day long. I look up from my work and there is the shadow of Geppetto and his wooden friend. That's when I know it's just a mood and will pass.

The Cheering Section

Drawings can only get you so far.

So I made a clay model for this carving, a quick gestural study, to help me understand the forms. I also brought out several carvings for reference. I'd look at them individually but it wasn't until this afternoon when I turned and saw them all together in the light that their other function dawned on me.

They're my cheerleaders.

I started collecting wood carvings about the same time I began carving. I needed encouragement (a lot!) in this difficult art. Some of the sculptures are folk art, many are religious images, a few commercial. I've bought them wherever I've been able to find and afford them, from Asian restaurants to galleries and from other collectors.

My collection of wood carvings is a dimensional reference library of answers and questions, a lineage of ideas, stories and work that continues to inspire me to tell stories in wood.

(From the left, small guilt Buddha is Japanese, on the stand is a Chinese votive deity, behind it is a polychromed Quan Yin.)

When is a Goat a Nutcracker??

When is a Goat a Nutcracker??
When it is part of my New Years Party.
Every year I make a sculpture of wood and cardboard and any thing else that serves, pack it with people's prayers and fireworks and set it on fire at midnight to welcome in the new year. This handsome fellow was 2008's offering. Standing at 6 feet 4 inches, he is holding a baby rat, the Chinese symbol for 2008.

The Ugly Duckling All Grown Up

The Ugly Duckling all grown up, visiting on his own terms under a lemon yellow sky. I used duck, goose and swan shaped driftwood to frame it. I loved this painting from the minute I first saw it. It's funny and mysterious. Just hung it in a different room so I can see it anew.


My friend,Norm Johnson, a theatre arts professor at Ithaca College, NY, painted it. He is raising hybred peacocks and other exotic birds at Medicine Tree Farm.

The Japanese Garden

The Portland Japanese Garden is a wonderful place in any weather. We got away on a grey Saturday morning for a quiet walk and some inspiraton.

Less is More

After finishing the little mother, I laid her down against a flat surface to see how much wood was removed.
Not much!.
That's the trick in carving, waste as little as possible,
conserving energy (Mine!) to get the most out of the mateial.