Shadows for Bells, 2006

Solo exhibition at Studio 21 Fine Art, Halifax, NS, Canada.

Shadows for Bells, 2006

5 elements, patinated bronze, steel stand
each element 30" x 84" x 24" (76 x 213 x 61 cm), overall dimensions of installation variable

The Shadows for Bells are - physically - a very new body of work. Conceptually – they tie firmly within my previous investigations of shadows and bells, and my Shields series.

The five elements comprising the installation are large, but intimate at the same time. The frames are like doorways; the bronze elements—the Shadows for Bells—are scaled very directly to the human body. They are the length of an arm, the volume of a torso. The forms hang on ropes in various heights in the frames, encouraging an encounter. They move and resonate sound.

Shadows are, for me, the most direct confirmation of the existence of a thing—a body. They confirm our being here, and are more true to reality than images or reflections, because they do not turn things around.

The bell is a reminder –a directed expression—to gather attention. The Shadows for Bells are a conceptual reflection on the spirit of creative power. They are like skin for a breathing body, shadows that confirm the sound of seeking, mediums that talk about a creative potential.

Within the Shadows for Bells there is a real potential for resonance and sound – and the manifestation of movement rather than stillness. The "breathing" forms encounter sound, air and movement. They are suggestive and open, but because of their "strangeness" they withhold more than they reveal.

>> Review: "You can ring sculptor's bells" by Elissa Barnard