Work on my parent’s farm started early, ended late, and happened seven day a week. This work ethic prepared me for an artist’s life. The hours are similar and both require multiple skills such as versatility and the need for innovation.
The lines of a square-rigger ship, whimsical colorful circus wagons, magical carousel horses, or the power of a bronze sculpture are what drive me to do art with a passion. The search for recycled woods such as driftwood, crotch wood, burled wood, or root wood is part of my daily quest. Using these unique woods to create art helps me to understand and respect the beauty in nature.
The clay and bronze images that I created of Aldo Leopold, John Muir, and Nina Leopold Bradley have brought me full circle—back to the land, water, and woods where I grew up. Creating such art allows me to honor those who have given voice to the awareness that we are, and need to be caretakers of the Earth.
The opportunity to participate in this year’s Fall Art Tour, brings me full circle once again. It was twenty-five years ago that I moved to Baraboo and set-up shop in the Elephant Barn at Circus World Museum to work on a carving restoration of the United States Bandwagon. Since then, in cooperation with the Circus World Wagon Shop, I have worked on an additional twenty-nine wagons.