My mid-life art practise began in earnest after art school at NSCAD (BFA’05). There, my eclectic ‘art’ interests gelled into sculpture. Its physical presence has enormous appeal and it is such a versatile medium, immediate and interactive in a visceral and provocative way that it challenges our thinking. It may be lonely sometimes being a sculptor in a room full of painters, but it is also liberating to have many more choices in utilizing space and in foregoing confining ‘supports’. I work mostly in steel, cutting it, forging it, welding it and grinding it, until an object emerges. This representative style of working reveals familiar things about and around us that are not always visible. Ironic contrasts, humour and visual metaphor are common elements.

an effective “lifeline”

I joined VANS because of sage advice from an art instructor who felt it was an organization that could help alleviate the woes of transitioning from a nurturing environment at art school to the ‘real world’. I remain a member after nine years because VANS continues to live up to my expectations as an effective “lifeline”…providing many diverse and valuable means of arming myself with certain knowledge and experiences to advance my art practise. I have participated in the Mentorship Program (’06-‘07) and acquired useful tips and insights from my mentor. I have taken many workshops, and improved some skills and acquired others, and all this while enjoying the company of other artists working in a different medium. I have found useful the free panel discussions on various and timely topics of which I would have remained oblivious. Ignorance does not improve one’s chances for survival in today’s economy. I have also participated in five VANS group exhibitions over the years, gaining experience and continuing to meet interesting artists.

it becomes unique or specific to one artist

My work is ‘direct sculpture’ fabricated by me. Some work is wall mounted and others are free-standing. The larger pieces comprise my ‘Public Art’. They include social commentary and commemorative works. Other works are individual commissions or a body of work produced for an exhibition. I am no different from any other artist in that we are all influenced by personal experiences, popular culture and the natural environment. It is the refinement of these into cautionary tales, or the documentation of life passages, or the portrayal of a memory or commemoration by means of a steel object-based sculpture that it becomes unique or specific to one artist.

between concept and conclusion

A constant challenge for me is in the process of actually making the art. There is a lot of hard work between concept and conclusion, even with the goal of keeping it deceptively simple but smart, not boring and not ‘ugly’. Without the ‘product’ there is no practise. Also, ‘friendly’ local venues for ‘public’ sculpture are rare and this is another challenge to overcome. I have been successful in showing Flight/Vol 4444 commemorating the centennial of man’s first flight in British North America. It was the only sculptural work in the 2009 VANS Regional Exhibition at the Shearwater Aviation Museum and it was invited to remain after the exhibition there for the visitor season. From there it was part of the Nocturne Art displayed at Alderney Landing and again its stay was extended a week. Another commemorative work, the Navy Centennial Triptych remained on the Dartmouth waterfront boardwalk adjacent Alderney Landing from 2010 until 2014. These successes, however modest, keep me ‘in the game.’

to exceed all future expectations

I am currently working on a body of work for a solo exhibition scheduled for the spring of 2015 at the Craig Gallery. The exhibition will explore some of the cultural determinants of female identity in the early formative years of childhood. This will be my third solo exhibition and each has been better than the last, based on a comparison of reviews/written comments. I am working hard to exceed all future expectations .