mosaics/ note from Louise


Just thought I would put my two cents in as the collaborative projects of late have rarely, if ever, heard from this voice.........
Creative Collaboration is first of all an extraordinarily complex undertaking in a marriage. We are not just surviving it but enjoying it. I think the suspension of ego is vital but at the same time retaining a sense of ego is even more vital because one or the other of us is bound to be stronger at one point in time through the process or another. We take turns being the dominant voice... this is interesting... and I love the give and take and the "ah hah" moments we share... the vision can be shared and it is wonderful...also neither of us is kidding ourselves about the "importance" of the art we create, except insofar as it is a communal project in our life to share with others as they accept...or not...
One of the images that we get is in our first large mosaic rock... I put in some tiny mirrors and we both are just blown away by the infinite imagery . When you peer into the form and your eye falls into the mirror reflecting the other side of the cut (and look back and forth) the experience is startling...like peering into the depths of the stone... another time and place... it is artificial but nonetheless it is actually a visceral experience for me...it arouses a desire to see further and further...it is quite fun. Is this the meaning of getting stoned? (ha ha) If it is, then it "rocks" (once again ..ha ha) There is an odd feeling as if one is looking into the soul of the rock...maybe I am a little eccentric which is certainly not a way I have perceived myself but as I write this I suppose it could be an argument about me...but this isn't about me; it is about a process..
The current project is not quite finished...more beads need to be applied so as to increase the sense of "roe" growing from the center of the rock....roe is approporiate after all because it is eggs... eggs symbolize birth and birth is the energy of the collaboration... birth is life process and growth follows as does the growth of our selves in and through the process of the growth of our marriage.
The wonderful pictures that Bennett took of this current project are so exciting in their abstract form. And the light from the rock is breathtaking. The mirror in this rock is a further evolution and is taken a step further than the first piece and it is so incredible to see the infinite chamber in the stone.
The background of the stone piece is fun and I think it is important to share the evolution of the piece. I will let Ben decide whether it is important or not.
The rock is from West Virginia. We love rock and Ben has been stealing rock from other places our entire marriage. This is from a river that we went rafting on with our friend Bob Thompson about 16 years ago or more...Ben is not here otherwise he would remember the name of the river, I don't at the moment. The rafting was more of a stroll in the park but it was a beautiful day nonetheless...
The rock has stood in one or another of places in our yard here in Peconic. It recently calved (broke) into two pieces. The form of the rock is wonderfully sensual and abstract and it used to stand like sculpture... Those two pieces then became the basis of the current "incarnation."
As we looked at it and as Ben carved the negative space into it , it broke again. So rather than despair, we decided to turn it into a dutch door into the center of the rock. Also,Ben was painstakingly carving the grid into the stone so as to remove the section of rock... but we decide the grid had an energy all its own... quite fun, really...so the mirrors enhance the grid and make it accessible in different ways...
The complex metal work is rod, hammered and welded to create a hinge originally but the rock protested many times over and Bless Ben he repaired many a break with the rod. There is a patient man... it is quite complex in itself and really creates a sculptural form on the exterior....
Anyhow, I have to go to work now but felt it was high time that I wrote something... I have no idea whether any one is reading this, and oddly it doesn't really matter, what is most important is to forge ahead....