Nov 29, 2010 Commodity

When shopping, I find it frustrating when I can't find a price tag. Seeing a huge price tag on a holiday tree made me think about how the price of art is often hidden--both literally and figuratively. And can we put a price on art or nature?

Nov 27, 2010 Set

Multiple repeating images are sometimes used in art to achieve abstraction, call attention to form or pattern, or call attention to a subject. These are four of hundreds of pods I found beneath a tree after a wind storm--the immediate landscape was full of artful repetition.

Nov 26, 2010 Public Art

It's fun to stumble upon spontaneous, temporary public art. Here the carefully sculpted forms are complemented by found objects. The upraised arms create a joyful mood. 

Nov 24, 2010 Poke

The tension in this form is the blades of grass bursting from the burden of the snow. It could easily be reduced to a 2-D drawing that takes advantage of the many linear lines.

Nov 22, 2010 Snow

The accumulation of snow on a bush creates a new landscape. Monumental forms are created as the snow builds and then bridges the gap between leaves. It's the sculptural equivalent of painting over an old work.

Nov 21, 2010 HIdden

The almost perfectly square parting petals of this camellia reveal a hidden cedar needle shard. In art, sometimes you need to observe from inches away in order to see the surprising elements.

Nov 20, 2010 Article

http://www.thenewstribune.com/2010/11/19/1430640/elegance-irony-honesty.html
Here's a link to the News Tribune article about all the Spaceworks installations; mine is mentioned in the last paragraph.

Nov 18, 2010 Infrastructure

After a recent storm this seed landed on red maple leaves. The veins of both the leaves and the seed are very evident. It's a reminder that sometimes it's nice to see the infrastructure of forms.

Nov 17, 2010 Junction

The thin gnarled branch meets the overlapping cone scales at a crusty junction. While it wouldn't seem that combining two forms in this manner would work visually, here it does. Sometimes in art you need to try something that doesn't seem intuitive.

Nov 16, 2010 Glossy

Among a pile of brown leaves a golden one shines through. The color is enhanced by the glossy sheen of rain water.  The form is ever so slightly convex.

Nov 15, 2010 Topography

The texture of tangerine skin isn't just a field of pits, its a topography of elongated valleys. The variation of the indentations is hardly noticeable because of the intensity of the form's color.

Nov 14, 2010 Tension

The negative space between the avocados helps to create a strong composition. There is a good sort of tension between the texture of the skin and the stem nub.

Nov 13, 2010 Red

There's a saying about getting art viewers' attention, "Make it big, make it red." But small and red is good too. The repetitive forms of this small, dried, red corn cob would translate well into a large sculpture.

Nov 9, 2010 Drop

Clear water drops under low light on top of a gray car.  The otherworldly texture is the result of lighting and background.

Nov 8, 2010 Outside

Some of the moss has stayed inside the lines created by the bricks. But it is the moss that has strayed outside the lines that has a more interesting form. Like art, it is sometimes better to color outside the lines.

Nov 7, 2010 Jumble

A jumble of red leaves on green grass. With the pile and the perspective it might take a moment for the eye to decode photo.

Nov 6, 2010 Open Studio

Come by my studio this weekend 10am - 4pm.  Today (11/6) and tomorrow (11/7) Tacoma artists open their studios for visitors.  See elements of my last four installations. I'm #6 on the tour map.

Nov 3, 2010 Gold/Blue

Another take on the gold on blue topic. This time a live tree replaces a transported stump and the sky replaces the water. The saturation of the colors is reversed (see Nov 2 post).

Nov 2, 2010 Golden

Stripped of its bark, this stump is luminescent every time I see it on the Tacoma waterfront. It is as golden and imposing as a memorial sculpture.

Oct 31, 2010 Re-Present Video

Here's my video about my Spaceworks Tacoma installation, "Re-Present."

Oct 30, 2010 Nest

This bird's nest has some surprising human-made elements that appear more decorative than structural--a blue twist tie, green landscape tie, and a wad of fishing line (bottom left). The form itself is a beautiful swirl of sticks, stems, and leaves.

Oct 29, 2010 Distinction

A few fallen leaves are isolated on a curb, a hint of a tree line is in the distance. The fog creates a clear distinction between foreground and background.

Oct 28, 2010 Subtlety

The difference in textures between the veined leaf and the rocky asphalt is highlighted due to the warm colors set against the steely gray. I ask myself, if this had been a painting or sculpture, would I have wanted more subtlety?

Oct 27, 2010 Vibrant

Autumn leaves are falling off the trees and flowers are looking spent and tattered. The wrinkled and torn petal still has a vibrant color and shape.

Oct 26, 2010 Silhouette

The dark silhouettes of the trees and building highlight the light gray clouds against the dark gray sky. The volume of the clouds stands out from the flat foreground.

Oct 25, 2010 Interpretation

In this grate I see references to mountains, rivers, rain, and lightening. The stylized and abstract design leaves a lot open for interpretation.

Oct 24, 2010 Orange

The intense pumpkin orange color seems out of place for leaves on a tree. Art and nature are full of optical illusions.

Oct 23, 2010 Imprint

An imprint left by a dumpster creates an interesting form in the grass. Trenches bracket the dead grass which has hints of new growth. The dark green frame sets it all off.

Oct 22, 2010 Arrangement

Three stages are visible in one glance and the bud-to-bloom sequence is aligned centrally. While botanical drawings sometimes display images like this, it's rare to find the forms arranged this way in nature.

Oct 20, 2010 Sidewalk

An innovated approach to the usual urban tree-in-a-square-sidewalk-hole. This hole is filled with slate and grass, making the sidewalk a flat surface form broken up with interesting shapes and textures.