Although I have “studied” art throughout my life I consider myself to be predominantly self-taught. I create
sculpture with antique tools and machine parts that have accumulated on a retired, century-old farm where I live
with my wife Kathrynn near Woodburn, Oregon. Kathrynn’s late, great uncle Glen Barnes was a farmer and an
exceptional craftsman - a true folk artist. Burdened with autism, he lived alone on this site his entire life.
Fortunately for me he never threw away even the tiniest scrap of metal. In fact, to the chagrin of his immediate
family, he frequented farm estate sales as well as the locally well-known Woodburn Auction and expanded his
inventory of wonderful weirdness continually until he passed on in 1995.
When we moved here in 2004 it seemed obvious that all this scrap metal was destined for the recycler but there was
something about the character of many of these pieces that caught my attention. There was an essence of integrity
and grace about them that inspired me. I began to understand why after reading the following excerpt from the
book Commitment to Freedom*:
"The year was 1908. The ferment of a new century - and of new forces and ideas - stirred the world. . . . It was in every
respect a world on the edge of profound change. Permeating all the factors of ferment was the total difference made
by man's new relationship with nature. For half a century or more, men had been breaking material barriers. They
thought they had come a great distance, and in relative terms they had. Power sources were being developed which
would help to lift the great burden of toil that had always hung heavy on the back of mankind. Steam and
electricity were multiplying many fold the work capacity of the world. The newly available forces were shrinking the
world. Steamboat and railroad, telegraph and cable, motorcar and airplane had appeared one after the other, each
drawing men closer together, multiplying their problems and their potential achievements."
The inventory of found objects I use originate from a time line that ranges roughly from 1900 to the late 1950's. Some
are easily identified and some are a complete mystery to me. I hope to honor the historical significance of these
mechanical artifacts by reinventing them as sculpture and sharing them in our time with you.
My greatest sculptural inspiration comes from the work of Richard Stankiewicz** who borrowed an idea from
Duchamp, and a pair of wings from Picasso, and elevated found object and abstract sculpture to extraterrestrial
heights.
I am a member of the Pacific Northwest Sculptors Association (www.pnwsculptors.org). PNS is a diverse community
of richly talented artists to whom I owe a huge debt of gratitude for their inspiration and encouragement.
*Commitment to Freedom - The Story of the Christian Science Monitor by Erwin D Canham published by Houghton Mifflin
**Reference: Miracle in the Scrap Heap published by the Addison Gallery of American Art
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