Scenes from  a Western Opera

The series of works entitled "Scenes From A Western Opera" was conceived as a marriage of the newly formed country - America - and elements of classical antiquity.  The ancients had a cultural and architectural heritage but the Americans had to create their own.  In ancient Greece it was common for famous entities to be represented in their architecture.  It would be understandable for these representations to occur in a newly developing culture.  From this premise comes the "Scenes From A Western Opera".  The pieces begin with an exhaustive search for the vintage artifacts of which these works are constructed.  The works are very time consuming to construct considering each fragment is carefully selected for its individual character or gesture.  Much planning goes into placement for the fullest impact.  Next, layers upon layers of materials are applied to create architectural depth and shadows as well as texture.  When a work is complete, we have our new myths based on our own history in classic sculptural form.