Wings

A friend requested a commission to give as a gift.  It was to involve the theme of angels and aquamarine.  I begin my process by spending a couple of days thinking about angels, what  lies beneath this symbol and how we respond to the idea of angels. All human cultures have some kind of symbol for freedom, for the spirit that leaves the boundaries of earth and joins the heavens or cosmos.  Wings of some kind symbolize the unique, whole and boundless spirit that all beings possess.  So I begin sketches with the beauty of this idea and thoughts of the person to whom the gift is being made.

A variety of directions I might go with this theme.

Making these sketches reminded me of a picture that resonated strongly with me, of a pictograph from Wild Horse Canyon, Utah.  It was of a winged creature with a very long tail that depicted a shaman with his feet on the ground and his head in the worlds beyond. Sometimes I feel that way, grounded but with my mind traveling in a different world, operating in a separate reality, especially when I am creating.  So I sidetracked and made a piece inspired by that pictograph and what it represents for me.  It gave me a chance to experiment with the sketches and textures in bronze before I move to the commissioned piece.  When it's finished, I'll put up more pics before adding it to  my shop.

Shaman Spirit Wings