Grasses in Summer

 On my way to work every morning I can't help but notice the grasses dancing with the wind. How do they transform the sunshine into the shimmering highlights that capture my gaze?

Grasses have been around since the age of dinosaurs, and humans have shaped them into some of our most common sources of nutrition. Where would we be without wheat, rye, rice, corn, and bamboo? We love our lawns, but my main interest is in grasses that are native to this area of Texas. 

Our roadside grasses are a mix of introduced and native species because of many popular species used for lawns and pastures. This month, the grasses are so compelling to me because the delicate fibers of their reproductive structures sparkle.

Walt Whitman said: I believe a leaf of grass is no less  than the journey work of the stars, And the ant is equally perfect,  and a grain of sand,  and the egg of the wren, And the tree-toad is a chef-d'oeuvre for the highest, And the running blackberry would adorn the parlors of heaven, And the narrowest hinge in my hand  puts to scorn all machinery, And the cow crunching with depress'd head  surpasses any statue, And a mouse is miracle enough  to stagger sextillions of infidels.

More Weekend Whispers at the Sculpture Ranch

Grace and power radiate from this piece. Flexibility and strength...these figures represent to me the beauty that can exist when people work together in harmony. Each figure has a different task, the bottom figure forms the stable, solid base...without which the top figure could not strike his graceful pose.

The humility of the man on the bottom is evident from his tucked head...he is simply there to make the top man "shine." His folded legs are  graceful and spread for strength, yet his feet are together, in a relatively weak position.

The head of the top man is also slightly tucked, giving him a humble appearance. They almost look like they are taking a bow after a fabulous gymnastic performance.

The picture below shows a closer view of the bottom man's head with its simple form and strong curve and angularity. His missing facial features perhaps indicate that he is an "everyman," yet could every man carry such a heavy load while staying graceful and on tiptoes?

The middle view shows the symmetry of the bottom man's form, with his bulbous head in the middle accentuated by his identical outstretched arms and folded legs. 

The bottom view shows the six-pack abs of the upper man, and the elegant positioning of his arms and hands. One palm faces outward and away, while the other palm faces inward towards him. We all have different internal and external personas, so his palms make me think of that.

The sculpture to the right shows the same acrobatic activity, but the actors seem to be children. You may not be able to see this in the photograph, but the surfaces of the children are covered with swirly versions of mouths, eyes, and even indications of faces. However, there is no face where each child should have a face. Also, the hands of the bottom child look more like feet than hands.

I am not sure what the sculptor means by leaving the faces off, but putting the elements of the faces all over the bodies. Our faces identify us and enable us to see and smell and taste the world around us. What purpose would be served by having mouths and noses and eyes all over our bodies? What symbolism is the artist conveying?

The mouths are open and have large teeth. They almost cry out to the world. The eyes are usually part of a swirly design element. They all have a circular depression in the middle, like the pupil of the eye. The noses are quite stylized. I will have to think harder to understand what this means.

Stilt-woman has some interesting features. Her face is delicate and feminine, although hairless. Her arms are bony, with three-fingered hands pointing away from her body. Her head and body look fairly human-like, but her arms and legs are not. Her surface is rustic, with the appearance of a peeling surface. Her upper legs are flattened and contorted, while her lower legs are stick-like.

So what could this mean? The parts of her body that keep her alive and human, such as her head (and brain by extrapolation) and torso (and internal organs such as heart and stomach), are relatively normal. But the parts of her body for motion and exploring the world (hands for feeling and interacting with, and legs for moving through it) are contorted. Her long legs let her stand above a crowd, and see ahead of her. They also let her cover more territory with each step. So is the piece a commentary on the importance of arms and legs. Her large hands can be used for keep herself safe from external forces.

These might be simplistic interpretations, but they are possibilities. I will end here tonight, although I have more interesting sculptures to show. They will be in a third post.

Weekend Whispers

This has been a fabulous weekend! A rural Texas art adventure filled my Saturday when I drove west of Johnson City to the bull sculpture and turned left onto a narrow ranch road. I am afraid that I would never have found the ranch without the strategically placed signs, but once there I was greeted by sculptures and a sign saying that it was Benini Sculpture Ranch.

The photo shows one of the kinetic sculptures near the gate to the ranch. The wind seems to blow constantly making the cups twirl around, reflecting the hill country landscape in their shiny bowls. Translucent reflectors glimmer with the sunlight as they twirl.

Benini, an Italian sculptor, and his wife moved to the ranch about 12 years ago. They have listed the ranch for sale, so I decided I needed to visit before the artwork was gone.

Many of the sculptures touched my soul, such as this figure of a woman delicately balanced on a hexagon. I relate to her because she is fairly full-figured, yet relishing in her beauty! Her face and arms are wide-open to the sky with its healing sunshine...soaking in the energy. What is she thinking? 

Could she be thinking about the color of the sky, the heat from the sun, the wisps of clouds? Could she be thinking of history and how humans have transformed Earth into their domain with other animals and plants playing a subservient role in the planet's life at the moment? Could she be thinking of something more personal such as love and relationships?

I can transfer anything that I want into her thoughts. She reassures me with her strong metal features and her steadfast balance. I wonder what the hexagon means. Could it be a symbol of something? The Bible says that "Man was created on the sixth day." I like to think of it as "Human was created on the sixth day" because women should be included with men. I do not buy the idea that woman came from man because women give birth to men.

This sculpture shows a much younger body, muscular and curvy in all of the right places. I can also relate to her because she is also strong and steadfast. Part of me blows with the wind, but part of me can be solid and steadfast.

I am steadfast in my love for my son and grandson, and the rest of my family. I am steadfast in my love for my dogs, Casey and Duncan. I am steadfast in my love for my country, although I do not always like decisions made by politicians in the name of my country's electorate!

Her arched back communicates self-assurance. Perhaps she was an athlete, posturing for a competition. This I am thinking as the television in  the background show some Olympians running races in London. Her body is certainly not a body of a runner...although that is hard to say since we cannot see her legs. The Olympic runners are leaner than she appears. She appears to have some softness to her body, perhaps an image from a real-life typical woman. Or perhaps she is an image from a male imagination. She does seem to have many characteristics that men consider attractive!

This sculpture of a flame touches me as do all flames. They make me think of the fire in my belly, the flame in my soul. This flame cannot morph and "spit" and move like real flames. It is trapped in its metallic form. I mentioned the strength of the sculptures above, but this really makes me think of strength. 

Real flames are strong in their own ways, and definitely capable of inflicting harm. But the materials used for these sculptures will last much longer than real flames. 

The curves and teardrop shape immediately drew me to this piece. Flames evoke the sun, our eternal ball of fire,,,the essence of all life, they keep us warm, and they give us light. This flame has an opening in the middle, almost like a womb with two smaller flames forming within. 

The patterns on the smaller flames evoke Native American designs to me. This along with the flame on top makes me think of something forming first (the patterned flame), forming the base for the creation of the shape on top of it, which forms a base for the flame on top. Perhaps this was the intent of the artist, showing how new creations need strong foundations of former creations upon which to grow strong and free.

These colorful sentinels seem to protect their field with sharp tips reaching towards the sky. The duality of male and female appears represented through a plethora of triangles. Triangle = three...the smallest number to enclose space, the simplest planar space, representation of the past, present, and future. 

Shiny bare metal points create the weapon-like impression conveyed by these sculptures, but they point towards the heavens with peaceful intent. They remind me of a man I new years ago. He had been a Green Beret soldier in Vietnam, and his tall, muscular frame was perfectly capable of "force." However, he was one of the most gentle men I have ever met. His forceful countenance protected him from violence, and enabled him to be the peaceful, religious man that was his essence. 

The United States aspires to be like that...strong enough to avert violence...but peacefully desiring to live in harmony with the rest of the world. Unfortunately, some people in the United States want to spread our way of life throughout the world. This is not respectful of other cultures and sometimes drives me crazy.

It is getting late, so I will continue the story of the sculpture ranch tomorrow.