On ViewBen W. Heineman Sr. Family Gallery of Contemporary Glass.
Interpretive Notes
Joey Kirkpatrick, a painter, and Flora Mace, a sculptor, have spent 30 years collaborating on the creation of vessels and sculptures in wood and glass. Whether they are making studies of birds in glass, blowing giant glass fruits, or creating wood torsos that contain glass vessels, all of their artistic activity reflects their deep experience of, and relationship with, nature. For this sculpture, the wood arms were gathered, peeled, formed by the artists using steam, and stained. The wood element refers to land or home (the forest), while the vessel symbolically holds a life-giving substance (water).
Physical DescriptionOpaque white non-lead glass cased with colorless, transparent colorless, black enamel; free- and mold-blown with enamel details, bolted wooden extensions, and base cut, drilled and wired together. Elongated white vertical figure with tapered straight-walled cylindrical "body" with upraised white-stained wooden arms with round ends angularly sliced and joined to upper body by means of two pairs of small countersunk nuts and bolts, wood holes have been filled and sanded; body joined flush to a mold-blown head by means of a thin black rubber washer and five pairs of drilled holes tied with black wire, head gazes upward with raised surface and linear enamel detailing; slightly splayed arms hold above the head a transparent amethyst optic molded bowl with rounded base and rough pontil, bowl joined to arms in same fashion as arms are joined to body; figure is attached to a low square base with block feet cut of black stone (slate ?) with a textured top surface (all other surfaces cut smooth), base has been drilled so that a countersunk pin or screw could be attached and inserted with adhesive into base of figure with a thin black rubber washer between body and base. Signed on wooden base "Joey Kirkpatrick/Flora Mace/1984". Provenance
