A Second Look at Versailles
The Gardens that is.
Some years ago I had the privilege of walking the grounds of Versailles. This series of wall sculptures merges the experience of Versailles with the more recent memory of touring manor houses and their grounds during a sabbatical year in England (2005-06). Garden design, whether symmetrical or asymmetrical, has yielded rich opportunities to explore these landscapes sculpturally.
This series of ten sculptures is the result of examining Versailles – The History of the Gardens and their Sculpture by Stephane Pincus (1996) in which the gardens are depicted from their earliest state to the current design. My close inspection of these plans allowed me to find internal plots where designs of tree lines, foot paths, lawns, and pools gave me sculptural inspiration. The wall mounting continues the work I did in Liverpool.
With this work I continue the long-running dialogue. Are these three dimensional paintings or painted sculptures? Both I think.
Some years ago I had the privilege of walking the grounds of Versailles. This series of wall sculptures merges the experience of Versailles with the more recent memory of touring manor houses and their grounds during a sabbatical year in England (2005-06). Garden design, whether symmetrical or asymmetrical, has yielded rich opportunities to explore these landscapes sculpturally.
This series of ten sculptures is the result of examining Versailles – The History of the Gardens and their Sculpture by Stephane Pincus (1996) in which the gardens are depicted from their earliest state to the current design. My close inspection of these plans allowed me to find internal plots where designs of tree lines, foot paths, lawns, and pools gave me sculptural inspiration. The wall mounting continues the work I did in Liverpool.
With this work I continue the long-running dialogue. Are these three dimensional paintings or painted sculptures? Both I think.
Rows and Hedges
Painted wood, polyurethane | 11 x 37 x 14 inches | 2006
Dark Shadows
Painted wood and polyurethane | 7 x 26 x 20 inches | 2006
Detail: Painted wood and polyurethane | 7 x 26 x 20 inches | 2006
Hilltop Tree
Painted wood and polyurethane | 13 x 22 x 28 inches | 2007
Uphill and Down
Painted wood and polyurethane | 8 x 44 x 14 inches | 2007
Level Up
Painted wood and polyurethane | 10 x 37 x 16 inches | 2007
From Here to There
Painted wood, graphite, and polyurethane | 7 x 45 x 19 inches | 2007
Detail: Painted wood, graphite, and polyurethane | 7 x 45 x 19 inches | 2007
Quarter Circle
Painted wood, graphite, and polyurethane | 5 x 24 x 20 inches | 2007
Fork in the Road
Painted wood, graphite, and polyurethane | 6 x 33 x 12 inches | 2008
Tree Pool
Double Rows
Painted wood and polyurethane | 7 x 68 x 37 inches | 2008
