ArtsWorcester - In Transition: A Members’ Exhibition, 2020

Jīn, wood, bark, metal, rope, 3’ x 3’ x 3”, 2020

Jīn makes the pinyin sound of the Mandarin character, 金, which means “gold” in English.  The spoken and written transition to hearing and seeing, respectively, creating a thought or picture in the mind.  

The wood, bark, metal and rope used in this piece are shared materials transitioning from boxed and static potential to sculptural components of an active and open suspension of brushstrokes of bark in a wooden branch frame. Both surfaces of the bark, the inside and outside of the skin of a tree, are visible, dark and rough, then light and smooth, transitioning during rotation around a vertical axis, but always present.

This work was inspired by several focused conversations with Ted Lilley and includes selected pieces from his extensive tree bark collection.  The branches are from Mary’s tree, Pat supplied the eye hooks from the Flamingo Fotos warehouse, and Elise asked me if I could use some macrame rope.