For the last few days, I have been occupied with the studio work and the isometric drawing of a housing unit, from the piece I have been laboring on for the last 6 months! The only piece since the cancer operation! Better be good! As good as what was shown at 701at the time of Wim’s death.
As a matter of fact, that short segment in my existence has proved to be key in my itinerary. There was the 701 event, then the operation, then the death of Wim and, for sure, the exit of Morgan from the scene, which signed the debut of my status as sole(itary) sculptor for TINYisPOWERFUL. Not that she had been at all productive with the group for quite a long time. She had dropped us altogether, really. But, for me, she still was an artist to talk to with a 3D mindset, so to speak. We would still meet in our studios once in a while. I would still send her images of works found on the net, which would happen to relate to her own art. Weird, how a fraternity had taken root, in my mind, related to the mythology of companionship, the sharing of a common trade. Now and again, we are missing a sculptor in the collective!
In any case, here I am, this fine morning – after an uneventful but extended dental extraction session (!) … – deliberately and with with a clear mind, making sure that the spirit of ‘a Tale’ and its 3D interpretation remain coherent, despite the rarefied schedule of my time in the studio or at the drawing table, for the last year and so! And, going back to Morgan, she is one of the catalysts for my stubborn determination to see this project through, totally unbeknownst to her, of course! Tired as I was of hearing her declare that my work was conceptual (a curse!), because it contained words – many words I admit – I had decided that there would be no words attached to the visual version of the Tale! The meaning of each chosen sculptural/formal gesture, each detail, was to partake in the objective or symbolic, or archetypal, referential, suggestive intent of the piece … yet be as decipherable as a children book! Because such is the nature of a tale.
As interpretative and mysterious as it may be, the imaginary world it defines is so intensely focused that, at the subconscious level, there is little room for translation, although the language of said translation may differ widely from reader to reader. Although I can hardly say ‘reader’: there are no words! A puzzlement, you ask? A Tale, I respond.