Stand
Sam Dickie

Stand is an exploration of material, of mark making, and of narrative. There is both an architectural framework and an intuitive modeling involved in creating life-size ceramic sculptures. With each new project, I learn about the integrity of my material. In Stand, I have explored both the tenuous strength of large slabs of clay, and the potential of imbedding detail into a soft, malleable surface. Every fingerprint and tool mark is an integral part of the clay form as an imprint of the artist’s intentions and inspirations.

Over the past ten years I have explored how minute patterns and unexpected colours bring life to the vast emptiness of the barrenlands and the towering expanses of rock peaks in the Yukon. My sculptural work focuses on that relationship of grandeur and detail which characterizes Canada’s northern landscapes. Stand reveals not only that scale and texture are fundamental elements in my work, but that the North is a dramatic source of inspiration.

As an abstract visual narrative, Stand describes stories of life seen and vanished. Like monolithic stone structures, or the charred standing remains of a forest fire, I feel an elemental rawness in each tower. Stand is about carving a visual narrative that is visceral, abstract, and curious.

-Sam Dickie

Exhibition date: September 29 – October 29, 2005

gallery  Johnson  Lonidier