ghoti

 In the September 1987 issue of
The New Yorker magazine, John
 McPhee wrote an essay titled

ghoti
$190

"Release".In this essay he gave an
account of a blind man who used,
what at the time was cutting edge
technology, a program that took
printed words form a computer
screen recited them in audible
form.
 The machine was able to read most
words properly, but had trouble with
some of the peculiarities of the English
language.
 As an example, John asked him to type
in the word 'ghoti', a manufactured word
often attributed to George Bernard Shaw,
that demonstrates some of these peculiarities.
The machine pronounced the word "fish", using
the 'gh' sound of 'laugh', the 'o' sound of 'women',
and the 'ti' sound of 'nation'.

This is the title of my latest piece. "GHOTI".
It is the rough approximation of the shape of a
fish, yet it is not anything like a normal 'ghoti'.

Annapurna

Annapurna is the tenth highest mountain
in the world. Located in Nepal, it was
the first mountain over 8000 meters to


Annapurna

 be successfully climbed.


It is actually a 34 mile long massif, of which
Annapurna 1 is the highest peak . While it ranks
number 10 in height, it ranks number 1 in
fatality rate. Prior to1990, the fatality rate of climbers was 66%.

Annapurna

My sculpture 'Annapurna' was not originally
concieved to look anything like a mountain.
It was meant to be a balance study, but after
I had all the pieces cut and ready to go, I
couldn't come up with a design that I was
satisfied with.





Annapurna
$440

  It was time to change direction.







The next idea that surfaced was to use the
pieces as wings. Bird wings were quickly
eliminated as a possibility, due to the shapes.
Some consideration was given to maybe
creating a large pterodactyl or dragon-like
creature. While this was certainly possible,
given the shapes, the idea never took shape.




In the back of my mind, I had been thinking
of making a larger version of a smaller piece
that I had made a while ago. That piece,
'Montana de Oro' is one that I am quite
fond of.


Montana de Oro
$100
SOLD



















So after a few false starts, I started with my new
design. It took a while to arrange the pieces in their
current configuration and it took some doing to
manipulate the pieces singlehandedly, but I'm


Annapurna
$440

 very pleased with the outcome.


'Annapurna' is a piece that would look good
in the landscape, either as a focal point or
nestled in a shrub border. It would also be an
exceptional piece for a courtyard or patio.


Annapurna and Towers #2

$440                      $290



More Outdoor Sculpture



Towers #1
$290



Here are a few more outdoor pieces

to get the spring landscaping ideas

going. All of these pieces have a

protective coating to make them

suitable for outdoors.



Miami
$140



Annapurna
$440



Diamond and Lace
$325

These are all older pieces with the exception of
Annapurna. More about that piece in a later post.

Also, I have two shows coming up soon. I will

post more about them soon.

Spring is Here, Think Outdoors

Portal 5.1
$500

With the arrival of Spring, it is time to
get outdoors and enjoy the beautiful
weather. This winter really seemed to
take its toll on one's spirits. After a
seemingly endless wait, the time has
come to revel in the glory of our
backyards, patios and gardens.
It's time to trade those parkas for
T-shirts,snow shovels for garden
spades, and hot cocoa for iced tea.
 So it is with the spirit of renewal
that I am posting some photos of
outdoor sculptures to jump start
the season.


Comet
$540

                    Enjoy!

Black Flowers
$250
SOLD

Terrain
$325

Bee Line
$280

Today is the Day

Hanging Chain #1
$85

Well, It's finally here. The first day of my first solo show.
I've spent the last two days transporting everything and
setting up. I didn't realize how many pieces I had. Maybe
I shouldn't have taken so much. We'll see..

$120

I have been getting some complimentary comments from
other artists as I've been setting up. So that is encouraging.


So, on with the show!


For show info, please see my previous post.

Chains

Over time, I have amassed quantities of chain. I wanted
to incorporate some of this chain into a few of my
sculptures. The question that I faced was how to use it.
I have seen many sculptures using chain where the links
have been welded to make the chain rigid. I've also
seen chain used primarily as just a mechanism to hang
a piece, not really used as an integral part of the


Hanging Chain #1
$85

 sculpture.
















What I ended up doing was to put these approaches
out of my mind and just grab a few lengths of chain and
go at it. After several false starts, I came up with several
designs that I thought worked. I believe that I have used


Hanging Chain #2
$85

 the chain in a new and original way.





























411
$110


 I still have much more chain and anticipate using more


Teamwork
$240

 of it in new and exciting designs.

Assembly #1
$180

My Latest Pieces



Objective
$95



Fresh from my Millvillle show, and all the

excitement that accompanied it, I've been

inspired to create several new pieces.

The first piece, which was actually in the
planning stages before the show, and I had
hoped to have ready to take with me, is titled
'Objective'. It is created from pieces of metal
found on the roadsides on South Jersey. The
circular shapes are actually the bottom of the
skid plates from a snow plow. I came upon them
as the snow was melting after on of the season's
early snowstorms.
To me, it represents the struggle to achieve our
goals and objectives, as signified by the hole in the
center, the target, if you will. There are also some
very sharp, jagged edges, typifying the snags which
deter us from achieving the 'Objective'.





The second piece is titled 'Winter'. There is no great

Winter
$90

 mystery here. The shapes are representative of a
stark woodland in the depths of winter. It was a fun
piece to make, and upon finishing it, i must say that I
am more than ready for 'Winter' to be over and for
Spring to arrive.















I have a few more pieces in the works and will
 post them soon.