With these hands …

RDP: Sculpture

Give a child a lump of Playdoh and they will, squeeze, twist and pat, and create something with it. It is the creative and playful mind at work.

To be creative is one thing, but it is not always synonymous with being imaginative. The distinction is this. A child can copy a Lego design beautifully brick by brick, but a child who pulls it apart and creates something of their own, is using their imagination. This distinction is something I’ve always had to be mindful of in my work with children.

When I moved into my current home a decade ago, the dream was to fill it with art and sculpture. The plan was to live in a happy place, a place I could call home. It has taken some time, but I’m getting there.

While striving to shape my dream into a reality, I had to be content with eclectic art and sculpture I found in other places.

Roadside, on the way to Ubud, Bali, Indonesia

The Balinese people make ornate carvings that adorn even the humblest of homes.

At the entrance of my hotel, Bali

Then there are those that are huge and imposing, often found in the hotels.

Outside the hotel spa, Bali

This sculpture, in particular, took me back to childhood years. We had a guava tree that canopied over a small water tank. I spent many an hour, stretched out over a branch, watching people below, pretending I was a leopard.

The sculpture is beautifully made and perhaps best viewed when expanded to see the filigree that makes up the spots on the leopard.

In a friend’s garden, Canberra

I love how someone turned a humble garden spade into a quirky little duck.

Waterbird, sculpture by Jason Wooldridge, a local artist and sculptor in Esperance, Western Australia

I find Jason’s work irresistible and his vision finds a place in my home and heart. I have several of his work. All birds, of course! He takes scrap metal and turns it into delicate sculpture.

Jonathan Jones, indigenous sculptor, National Art Gallery, Canberra

I was in Canberra last year for just two days. My nephew, an architect, asked me what I wanted to do. The National Gallery, of course! Of all that the Gallery offered in the time I was there, I was so drawn to the work of Jonathan Jones. These massive stones were in a huge open space with a narration in Wiradjuri language underpinning a simple but profound message about Country: stay connected, and the reciprocity of need and caring for it. I went to the Gallery with my nephew and his toddler. She sat in the stroller, quiet as a mouse and took it all in, as did we. There was a sense of solemnity that was quite powerful and moving. It was difficult to walk away from this space.

Sculpture by Jonathan Jones, National Art Gallery, Canberra

Sculpture by Jonathan Jones, National Art Gallery, Canberra

I loved this one the most. It was huge and just so very beautiful.

River bed, Murchison River, Kalbarri, Western Australia

And then there are those unexpected sculptures left behind in nature.

Some with angles and edges, waiting for the sculptor’s hand to shape and define. Others, made perfect by the storms and ebb and flow of tides, and all that remains, is just heart. Much like us.

Until next time

As always

a dawn bird