The International Sculpture Center, (the publishers of Sculpture Magazine), some 4 years ago suggested that there be an International Sculpture Day. Not surprisingly sculptors and sculpture organizations around the country thought this was a good idea.
This is our third year of participation. It is a thing we look forward to all year. Much effort goes into preparations and not enough can be said about the volunteers who put it together.
This year the event was held at The Cave gallery in Vancouver WA. The gallery mounted a juried show of member’s works for the month of April 2018 with an opening on Friday, April 6th. International Sculpture Day was celebrated on Saturday the 21st. On that day three artists gave talks, demonstrations of welding and ceramic construction were outside and the vacant storefront next door was transformed into a space for immersive and interactive installations. Janet Julian provided acoustic music on a vintage Gibson guitar.
Demonstrations were provided by Dave Gonzo, (welding), and Chayo Wilson, (ceramics). Also featured in that area were additional works by those two artists which included a rather remarkable spider fire pit by Dave. Note the glass eyes glowing from the fire within.
Immersive Works were set up in the vacant storefront next door. Just to the left of the doorframe a 3D printer provided by Proto Pasta of Vancouver was busy squirting out tiny gnomes. The floor, walls and ceiling were festooned with assorted segments of bamboo. Some pieces were meant to be rearranged as one saw fit. Curious items were here and there. Further up a passage was a box fixed to the wall. In it were a number of LEDs strobing in unison. A knob on the side of the box could control the frequency. One inserts one’s head into the box and then manipulates the knob to create the most desirable hallucinations. Not anything like flying monkeys but rather interesting moiré type patterns of dots. Those subject to seizures were clearly warned away. Flying monkeys have never hurt anyone by the way.
The Belly was just on the other side of the corridor. That was small darkened space lit by a salt lamp, the floor covered with pillows and a soundscape coming from hidden speakers. Artist Talks were introduced by Jennifer Corio in the main gallery. She talked about International Sculpture Day and our participation in it for the past 3 years. George Heath the current president of PNWS introduced the organization and talked of its purposes and goals. Three artists then spoke for about 15 minutes each. Sue Westfall Quast described how her art developed and intersected with life over time. Craig Dorety, a light sculptor, spoke about how the peculiarities of LED lights could be utilized creatively and further how such lighting can interact with the mind. The strobing chamber mentioned in Immersive Works paragraph was one of Craig’s pieces. Chas Martin spoke of creating a piece so as to control the space around it and using that space to elicit a response from the viewer. He also described how his current work developed from line into sculpture.