Contemporary sculptures in the round communicate very differently from two-dimensional art on a gallery wall. They command a presence by their very solidity. Squarely occupying space, they force the viewer to completely engage in the art.
Some artists revel in the temporary nature of 'green' materials, aiming for minimal impact on the world after their time. Unexpected materials varying from sand, fruit, vegetables, scraps of washed up debris and even trash... are used with consummate skill for the creation of contemporary sculptures.
Because of the current emphasis on environmental responsibility, sculptors use materials that would never have been used in an earlier era, where the desire of the creator was for longevity.
I love creating contemporary sculptures because I enjoy looking for new ways of telling an old story—my favorite story of grace, redemption and love!
Longevity and durability of the work is important to me. I care about those who purchase my work and their hopes for quality work that is also archival, enduring for years to come. I often combine polymer clay with natural stone or glass to create these sculptures.
There are technical challenges in creating a work that will be seen from all angles. In viewing sculpture, it is important to consider more than the skill of the sculptor, the medium, or the level of craftsmanship exhibited. What is a story behind the work? What meaning did the sculptor infuse into it, intending for it to be read by others?
"The Water Bearer" is made of white metallic polymer clay combined with a beautiful piece of marble that has a luscious translucency and the most interesting grains.
Over the years I have discovered so many scriptures on the theme of Living Water that have inspired a series of paintings, drawings and sculptures.
Here are a few of my favorite verses:
• "If you knew the gift of God and who it is that asks you for a drink, you would have asked him and he would have given you living water." John 4:10, spoken by Jesus to the Samaritan woman.
• "Whoever believes in me, as the Scripture has said, streams of living water will flow from within him."John 7:38
• "My people have committed two sins: They have forsaken me, the spring of living water, and have dug their own cisterns, broken cisterns that cannot hold water." Jer 2:13
I see a world of precious people dying of thirst—a dry, raw thirst that they strive to quench with everything but 'living water'. Lonely, hopeless lives are filled with distractions, some happy, others not. The theme of "living water" is a theme that I never tire of.
I see a world oblivious to the passage of time and the accountability God will require of them once their days on earth are spent.
The only advantage that I have over them is that Jesus quenched my thirst with His living water. I am now a Water Bearer.
A Water Bearer is only effective if
she has experienced the deep satisfaction of a thirst that was once raw, but is now quenched.
she has access to an unlimited supply of living water to quench the thirst of others, for whom she pours out this precious resource.
As Christian artists, we have frequently been caught in circumstances that caused us to come to the dusty, arid end of ourselves.
Turning to Jesus, we have enjoyed being lavishly sated with living water!
Jesus then strategically sends us out into the lives of others, as His Water Bearers. He has given us the precious duty of developing sensitivity to the thirst around us.
He desires that we, who have drunk long at the springs of living water, gently encourage others to take a drink, so that they too will be forever quenched.
May we as contemporary Christian visual artists find ourselves worthy of such a privilege while we create works with our hands!