22 Sep Little Colossus, 2005

Little Colossus, 2005
Recycled Steel
44″ x 50″ x 33.5″
Private Collection

Little Colossus started out as a base  for Galaxy No. 3 but soon made it clear that it wanted to be it’s own sculpture. There are some photos on the studio blog from before it was painted that show some of the cool tricks it can do with light and shadow. This is one of the pieces that has really taught me a lot about utilizing the space around a sculpture to extend the experience. Think of it kind of like audience participation… you have a show going on, invite the viewer to add their voice and come up with something deeper and richer as a result. The same kind of thing can be done by designing artwork that uses light, shadow, sound or other elements of the environment to reveal different things at different times.

I also love the way it strikes the attitude of a spunky bulldog throwing it’s chest out. My cat Mojo takes exactly that pose when she’s deeply annoyed with me… while it was at the studio, I often jumped when I caught it in the corner of my eye because I thought it was a living creature that had snuck up on me!

You might also like these adorable photos of children playing with the sculpture at the 2005 Alden Art Fair.