Through the Looking Glass Series
This is a new series for us. Just as with our other bowls, these are made with locally salvaged trees. In this case though, we had a lot of small cut off pieces laying around the shops. Since we don't want to throw out any portion of the trees we save, we explored creating a three dimensional checker board block. It took a great deal more preparation than our traditional bowls, but the results were surprising and beautiful.
There is a metaphor in these bowls. The obvious metaphor is that contrast of black and white accentuate each other, making each one more beautiful than they would be alone, or with colors that did not contrast. While true, this metaphor is more appealing. This is a block of rectangular forms, 90 degrees, rigid, stiff, ordinary. But by taking a path through these layers of typical angles that is wandering, a magnificent beauty is revealed. Honestly, we were surprised by the fact that all these amazing curves and swoops would occur when we carved this bowl. But there they were. And the swoops transfer perfectly across the blocks. What starts as a swoop in the walnut is handed over to the ash, who continues the swoop, carried across the bowl like a torch being passed from person to person. That is a great metaphor, and one we as humanity should aspire to.
