Ocean Side Pillar

Being back upon the shores of the Long Island Sound has resurfaced many emotions, perspectives, ideas, and, my favorite, materials. The winter has long been forgotten and the physical drive and energies of summer has overtaken. I have succumbed to them all and attempted to focus them neatly into another shoreline sculpture piece. The following piece is very similar to another I did a few years back upon the opposite shore of the continent while visiting Oregon. See photo below.

I try to frequent the boundary of our world and that of ocean life when I can spare a few hours after long days working on a farm out on the northern point of Long Island. These times are often full of refection and thought, but with my strong mental engine they can easily fill with poetry or, in this case, sculpture. Often I let the interest in materials that I discover spark ideas, which then come together while I do my best in building a final product. Surely, the process and findings change the end result, but always for the best. Positivity is a bountiful element.

(click photo for a larger image)

This piece was created upon two different visits a week apart. (Upon writing two weeks later, the piece is still standing despite 25 mph winds and high tide and is now accompanied by some other shoreline art from an unknown creator.) The first day of creation was an exhausting few hours of collecting the human cut stumps from various parts of the shore; the longest travel was about a quarter mile. Some were pushed along the smooth stones and some were floated in the shallow salt water. All of the elements weighed a great deal, far more than I could lift solely, but due to some ingenuity I was able to erect the pillar with patience and a bit of muscle.

The second visit was the tedious act of collecting the smooth gray-black stones. While slumped over the beach quickly darting my hands about for the only tone I was in search of I had a silly realization. In the time that I had taken away from farm work, which demands high physical labor and minute tasks, I had chosen to create an art piece that uses those exact traits. The morning before collecting the black stones to create the base (roughly two feet thick) I was picking strawberries much earlier than most people rise. The same mental game was being played out: ignore all shapes and colors, but small red droplets. Again, just a half a day later, I was ignoring all shapes and colors, but off-black ellipses. I wasn’t sure the conclusion of such a realization, but in many instances of life we do similar movement that we find tedious and possibly daunting, but in a different light we can find them meditative and introspective.

The final piece stands about nine feet tall or so with a base of about four and half wide. Each stump was obviously cut from different trees and different species. My concept was to reconstruct a strong trunk-like pillar from pieces of weathered driftwood that humans have chosen to discard. I enjoy what the ocean and wind have done to each article. I was lucky enough to find such great material even though they were a bit distant from each other, but think of how far they must have traveled to even arrive in the same general location. I spent a great deal of time positioning each stump to have the final composition appear tilted, but still sturdy. I wanted to stay true to the inconsistency and asymmetry of appearance found in the growth of all flora. With the positioning of their weights and surfaces I finally found a fit for each piece to stand strong on its own and, at the same time, assist the overall structure.

This piece was a taxing labor of handling the large material that was once important to a whole (a living tree), but exquisite and monumental paired with other similar selections. The concept can travel deeper mimicking our species attempting to re-bandage nature after we have taken such liberty with its destruction. Like all of my natural sculptural pieces I let the tides and the winds tatter and tear what I have created, much like the natural world we live in, whether we choose to realize it or not, also does.

*This piece was located just forty feet from a prior piece title The Structure, which has not one trace left.

A Spring Walk

Nature can be complex at times, but also simple in various forms. This is a short clip of early spring in Vermont and the movements that are always around us. Sometimes seeing and being present is all we need.

The Wind

For my final piece of the season on the L.I. Sound, I wanted a piece that was pleasing in composition. I decided on a structural piece that would seem to flow with wind although stationary. In autumn, you feel the wind once you approach the beach, coming over the water from the northwest. Nature's powerful breath. Anything exposed to the wind is affected by this movement of the air; the stones, the water, the trees, migration and so on.

I spent a good portion of a shortening day wandering the beach for parts that would work for the final piece. I love the abundance and the quality of the wood that is brought in by the tides. It took some balancing and many trials, but in time I found the composition and tightened it up. The piece lasted for many days until the tide and the wind slowly toppled the piece and casted it all about the shore and into the water, just as the items were previously.

Beach Nest/Fun with Instagram

While wondering along the smooth pebbles on a gorgeous summer evening, I was overtaken by the urge to create another art piece on the LI sound's shore. I didn't have anything particular in mind, so I got to poking around various debris that had been washed ashore. The high tide creates a wandering line of seaweed that has snagged grasses, sticks, and other small items floating about in the ocean. Together it creates such a wonderful array of color and texture. I was drawn to the source for material.

The scratchy seaweed acts as velcro as it grips to itself nicely. I immediately thought about how it is very similar to the way a bird's nest tucks together, which is the concept I decided to go with. I gathered a collection of drift wood and created a frame, gathered seaweed, and packed it in. There was all sorts of human trash such as ribbon, balloons, and rope that I also decided to tuck in which we find common with most of nature.The piece needed some pop and a bit more suggestion of a nest, so I collected in the whitest rocks I could find along with some golf balls and plastic soda caps.

The piece tucks nicely in the crock of a old tree washed ashore and sparks some interest from shore line wanders. The following photo was taken days later after the seaweed has sagged substantially.

Fun with Instagram:

I had a friend visiting who was the owner of those fancy and addictive technological devices knows as an iPhone. I inquired if he had Instagram on the device, which he surely did. Together we assembled a set that we would photograph using beach debris and play around with Instagram (which I have learned is an simple touch version of Photoshop). We sought out to create a surreal style shot. Total time for completion, roughly 35 minutes.

The Structure

I have relocated to the North Fork of Long Island, just a few miles from the eastern most point. My days are full of farm work in the sun resulting in sore muscles from long hours. But I am not one to simply crash at the end of the day. The biggest perk, and inspiration, to the location is the quick connect to the shores of the Long Island sound. With a bike or quad ride through the woods, the land opens up and tumbles down through thick brush to the rocky shore looking north to Connecticut.

I have created a few smaller pieces along the beach using the smooth rocks and their varying colors, but I wanted something big, something that wouldn't get snuffed out by wandering beach feet. I wanted to create something seen from afar and out of material that just as easily acts as a bench or a balance beam to others. 

A plan to camp on the beach as we ventured the psychedelic realm resulted in an epic art structure that was devised from a smaller attempt of a similar nature a few days prior. I attempted to build a structure that was just barely manageable by one person given the material found along the shore. Something that would be beyond the size and ratio of the average human. It started out well, but took time and ultimately lay unfinished until a few days later.

We relocated the planned piece closer to the water in hopes that time will slowly force the structure downwards and possibly back into the waters from where is slowly came. The current and movement of the ocean brings driftwood in some massive sizes. Along the rounded pebbles one can balance along smooth surfaces of trees that have gently come to rest amid the boulders. There was branches, telephone poles, railroad ties, and even christmas trees all weathered by the wind and the salt water.

We scoured the coast for wood that seemed far too large for us to move and moved it. Using wedges, levers, and slow rolling shoves we guided the individual pieces into the water where they instantly became maneuverable under the buoyancy. The salt water was cooling as the sun warmed our tiring bodies. We then used similar techniques to move the pieces up the beach and props to get them into place. We constantly removed and replaced pieces as we discovered more, which built the base much bigger than we thought possible.

We worked into the night and finished beyond sunset placing the final pieces as the stars began to appear. We stood back to view the accomplishment, but could barely make out the silhouette. Our brains buzzed long into the night as we rocked in hammocks until sleep took us away. 

The dimensions are still to be measured, but the final photograph shows the scale with my wonderful wife sitting alongside. I estimate the height to be almost 20 feet and the base roughly 15 feet by 17 feet.

rasthree: Being in Order, Winter Art Show, Burlington, VT

I have just finished displaying my first public show shown in Burlington, VT during November and December. I displayed ten pieces total, eight of them being brand new pieces created particularly for this show. I am posting the show as one would have walked through the space with a brief summery as well. Click on the photos to enlarge the image. The following statement was on display and summarizes my thoughts and processes for the pieces:

"I enjoy deconstructing things to be able to discover how mechanized equipment comes together for a final purpose. I find myself doing the same, not only with physical objects, but even with systems, social life, class order, and gender roles. It becomes mesmerizing what we can accomplish and maintain as humans. Our life is compiled with objects and techniques built atop of each other; these things we so depend on aid our own lives and become ideas that please us.


As I briskly move through my life I am always drawn to ornate aesthetics: shiny things, gears, and curves. Sometimes I find these walking along architecture, pointing a camera lens, or perusing thrift stores. Once I have found a few things, I throw them in a box only to rediscover them later and eventually tug, pry, unscrew and sometimes break. As I ponder over these items in my hands I begin to re-imagine various pieces together and on display thus forcing these inanimate objects to speak differently to one other, to create an idea together. I invite the viewer to visually poke through the art, begin to work and wonder at relationships, piece together stories, begin theories, and be visually intrigued"


Memorial to the Lost Indigenous; Remembering a Cultural Genocide

A large piece I had in the back of my head for sometime while gathering material. I wanted to create a remembrance for the cultures that were diminished and even destroyed upon the European 'founding' of North America. As in most my art I do this in a satirical way. In this memorial I chose to reverse the idea (as our American culture likes to do in remembering) and show what the Europeans invasion chose to cover their new lands with. The cow skull is to represent agriculture and the rise of mono-animal husbandry. The barbwire alludes to the fencing in of not only land and movement, but to the lost peoples. Finally, the feathers are to show our ignorance and misunderstanding of the native cultures or our description, the indians. This piece was inspired from my time in Wyoming and Montana a few years back.

The Sacred Heart of Clint Eastwood; A Sanctuary for the Damned

This piece is a reinvention of a study I did previously with the same image of the Clint Eastwood/Jesus figure. The following quote is from a previous statement on the image: "Obviously, the entity of Jesus is arguably different from that of Clint Eastwood, but Clint is a ideal, a character, and a vessel for story, just as Jesus is." In this piece I display a recognizable shrine full of offerings that many religious followings would also on to their idols or icons including liquor, prayer-like dolls, candles, gold, and tobacco. This piece is to act humorous, but also thought provoking to what we as individuals believe in or idolize.

Johnson & Murphy; An Institution of Law

I came up with this piece while investigating my cache of found and discovered items. The objects are mostly recognizable individually, but gracefully come together as a whole to pull the piece together. This piece is to promote secrecy, power, status, and illusion; all ways I feel about justice and the laws and people that protect that idea. The title presented itself while I was installing the shoes upon the shutters, Johnston & Murphy was stamped on the underside of the shoe so I dropped the 't' and created a law firm.

God Bless; A Sight unto True Color

I had to include one of my favorite and most remarked upon piece I have made. This was created years ago and has traveled in and out of many places, galleries, and homes. One of my newest endeavors will be to restore this piece and photograph it to be available in a print form. I believe the meaning cane be derived from the viewer's inspection of the piece, but if one would like to learn more on the piece, I have a post one the piece itself from March of 2011.

The Business of Women; Always About the Upper Hands

I wanted to include a briefcase into an art piece for it's power to various figurative meanings and almost instantly this idea came to me. The idea behind this piece to create a thought loop for lack of a better term. I have heard many people's take on this piece and have discussed my meaning on the piece. I enjoy what ideas people can derive from the relation and tension from just three objects. I won't explain my meaning of the piece, but I will say that it supports females in, not only business, but throughout the world.





Hanging Floral Arrangement; Ornate Scientific Diagram

After being asked to create a lamp for charity earlier this year I was left with various bottles and lamp materials. The idea was to create two almost ornate and symmetrical pieces to be hung side by side. I also wanted the piece to be decretive moreover than a piece of art. This piece is one, of a few, piece that I strictly created as an interesting composition to view. Any further thoughts are, of course, welcome to explore. 

Picnic of Purposeless[ness]; Arrangement of Lost Items

This piece is also a piece that I created before this show. It was, however, one of the first pieces that I really felt comfortable with the three-dimensioal and sculptural medium I have been in exploration of. From a previous statement about the piece: "delve upon the elements through material, color, reflection, and even personal histories. Upon deeper investigation one will start to discover that most the objects are unique in their own way even though they are the similar to their symmetrical oppositions. Further, various shapes and even distorted faces begin to emerge."

The Whitman's Room; A Look into the Simple

This piece was also created from the cache of items that I have slowly accrued. These items don't necessarily react with one another in most instances, but have been brought together in a small, yellow shadowbox to force strange, various relationships with one another. In a way, the whole composition feels like one would be looking at the dresser top of a small boy, preferably a character from a Wes Anderson film (Whitman is the last name of the three brothers in The Darjeeling Limited).

Water Rights; The Route Problem

This piece is similar to a piece I previously did some years back. I want the viewer to react to the piece and the title, wondering a bit more about it. I am trying to bring attention to the misuse and misdirection of water and it's right to be where we think we see fit. None of the hoses or fixtures line up in the piece further portraying the idea that we attempt to control the natural flow of water, the life force of the planet.

Amungus; False or distorted sensory experiences that appear to be real perceptions. These sensory impressions are generated by the mind rather than by any external stimuli, and may be seen, heard, felt, and even smelled or tasted.

The final piece in the show is a homage to alter senses and the various ways we may discover them from drugs to meditation and even further. These experiences travel over emotions that can be scary, beautiful, calming, chaotic, childish, and disorienting. When we look back to these experience they arrive in a final memory that may not entirely make sense, but is composed nonetheless.

Lone Rock Point

I have always been a huge fan of art that has looked to nature for resource and material. The biggest inspiration being Andy Goldsworthy. His art is wonderful reinterpretations of nature through order, color, and shape. I find great comfort in viewing his pieces and I also attempt to look at the world as he may also see it.

I was traveling about a personally newly discovered bit of nature with a family member. The geological makeup of this place, Lone Rock Point, is very rare and as it shows a great and very distinct divide in rock matter. Notice the dark hued rock below and the brownish rock above. 

As we wandered along the shoreline of Lake Champlain we would notice certain areas where brownish, pinkish rock had fallen and shattered on top of the black slate beach. It was a great burst of hue in random spots and we both quickly jumped into a spontaneous art piece. We reordered the various rocks into an end piece that was rendered through shape and color. Click on the image for a larger view.

My art has traveled down a path of reordering material in many types of ways which sometimes pulls meaning, but always attempts to be pleasurable in viewing. I look forward to my first art show opening this coming week. I will be posting the pieces in the show soon or come on by to the opening to see them in person. 

Being in Order

Over the past month I have been extremely productive in preparing my first solo show. Not only will I be displaying a few previously finalized pieces, but I will be introducing at least seven new pieces as well. Lately I have been asked what kind of art do I do and I struggle with the mediums description. "Mixed media" is just as vague and bland as "painting", not that painting is worthless, but there is more to be said than just mixed media or painting. 

So, I have taken huge leaps away from traditional art creation process falling into a realm of three-dimensional sculpture blended with mixed-media. At my work space I find paintbrushes used less and less and a drill in my hand more often than a pencil. I take on a great deal of materials that I find all over the place and rework their meanings and relationships, which creates an awesome thought process of problem solving and handiwork. The art that I will be unveiling is very similar to a recently finished piece, which will be in the show, called Picnic of Purposeless[ness], posted just a few months prior.

The subject matter varies a great deal including everything from the business of sex to the genocide of the indigenous peoples of this continent. Of course, the art will speak for itself and, as art usually becomes, subject and meaning is solely up to the viewer.

I am very ecstatic to have been asked to put on a show by the great people at Arts Alive here in Burlington, VT. They are a great organization and so helpful to meeting artists with locations. If you find yourself perusing the wonderful First Friday Art event on the 7th of November stop on by and say hello.

Faucets (Lamp)

I was asked to create a lamp for a Give Way to Freedom event held in Burlington, Vermont. The piece will be involved in a silent auction to raise money and awareness to shine a light on the human trafficking dilemma. Fourteen other artists will also be contributing up-cycled, recycled, and original pieces to the event. More information on the event can be found at www.facebook.com/events/141926259311416/ and information of Give Way to Freedom is found at www.givewaytofreedom.org and 

At first I was a bit weary and unsure of how I was to design an art piece that moves into the realm of functionality. With most of my recent art pieces deriving through the use of found or discovered objects I figured that would be the correct route to travel down. Over the past few months I have collected all kinds of items that have interested me through material and reflected light. I search out objects that hold a feeling of heaviness and come from a time when our homes and lives were built on a smaller mass manufactured way.

The design of the final piece was put together to bring simple curves and color together while maintaining reflection on parts of the piece. This was a way to pull the three main objects (the champagne bottle, the faucets, and the light fixture) together as they are three objects not usually found together. The relationship of the pieces are developed by the light as well as shape. I placed the items in ways to keep movement to the piece and break up any rigid suggestions that may develop. Also, a sense of the negative space begins to emerge as well. Overall I wanted the piece to glorify simple curves, create a feeling of fragility and a feeling of oddity.

Picnic of Purposeless[ness]

This piece began as I found interesting objects on the shelfs tucked away in a basement. I would put them up over a window in a semi-precise way just to fill an odd space. After a few months the idea outgrew the small space over the window and I decided to reconstruct the idea with much more of a precise and measured way. All of the objects mounted were found either in thrift stores, building resupply stores, or a basement. Not one was intentionally searched for, but while searching I would poke at similar items in color, reflection, and ornate design. This is part collage and part sculpture with a bit of homage to Dada.

Click the image for a larger view

The objects have been deliberately placed to pull the viewers eye about the piece in a mosey sort of way. After a few glances I hope the viewer will delve upon the elements through material, color, reflection, and even personal histories. Upon deeper investigation one will start to discover that most the objects are unique in their own way even though they are the similar to their symmetrical oppositions. Further, various shapes and even distorted faces begin to emerge. My overall intention was to create a large decretive piece that utilized objects that are decorative in their own right but very often overlooked as so.

This piece was extremely fun and interesting to work with. With a pile of tools and measuring devices I mapped out and put the piece together in just over a week. It measures around 6 feet, 2 inches wide and 2 feet tall. In the time of execution I have begun preliminary work on two new ideas that follow the same structural/sculpture representation of art and object. 

Fry Box

During a run about the winter streets I saw a portion of a container sticking out of the snow. There wasn't much in tact, but I knew right away what it was. I was struck by the immediate knowledge of product and wanted to create a piece that did the same. I am not creating this piece for any support to big company, but to bring awareness that we are so immersed in an unhealthy, consumer driven society. All in all this is a simple painting done in acrylic.

Sacred Heart of Eastwood

Porcelain Plate, Digital Image

I had an idea for sometime which would idolize an American figure as we idolize religious figures. For months and months I came up with ideas and various executions, but I couldn't project anything that I was comfortable with as a final piece. I took a step back began to think of celebrities that our culture knows and loves. I also took into account who these celebrities portray and what that means to us as viewers. I came to a personal favorite, Clint Eastwood, due to many reasons. Not only is he a highly well known actor, but most of his roles are portrayals of the great America man during various time periods. He generally portrays the hero, which in some instances can be a blurred version or can even be a darker-style hero. I chose his role as Blondie in The Good, The Bad, and The Ugly due to the decisions that his character makes turning him to a profitable man in the end via gold (which replaces the heart in the famous religious rendition of Jesus). Obviously, the entity of Jesus is arguably different from that of Clint Eastwood, but Clint is a ideal, a character, and a vessel for story, just as Jesus is [religious folks grumble].

I find this piece to be pretty humorous as well as quite creepy, which is how I generally feel about most religious portrayal that follows a similar style. I took a clam shell plate, which is my way of utilizing an odd object to praise religious figures such as an upturned bathtub with a figure of Mary standing inside that one may see on many lawns of the world. I used my background in design to create the image and this was my first undertaking of an image transfer, which took many attempts to arrive at the desired result. I am very glad to see this piece finalized as it has morphed over time from just a humorous thought to completion that I am very pleased with.