In the pillory

A Solid structure protects, supports but also limits the creature held within to the extent of almost suffocating it. On one hand this barrier may be meant to shield the vulnerable creature inside from the harsh and judgmental world outside, or instead serve as a protection to the outsider from the erratic and inappropriate being held within. Who needs protection more?

It is the fear of the unknown which has created this almost complete lack of communication between the outside world and the content held within these structures. I illustrate this psychological drama by juxtaposing the man-made mechanical aesthetic with a more organic and mysterious inner life.

Film Excerpt from the short documentary Eternal Moment by Simone Stammbach.1998. It shows the neckpiece "The Secret of the Voice" which I created in 1993 when I was studying metal smithing at Parsons School of Design. The piece is inspired but medieval torture and prison devices and the custom of parading prisoners around town to be spat and laughed at. I only learned twenty years later that this piece war really about the true voice which everyone has to find for themselves. Until then we carry it locked up in a hidden chamber in our throat.

The Secret of the Voice film clip

Film excerpt from the short documentary Eternal Moment by Simone Stammbach. 1998. The film features my earliest artworks which were all created with the use of the traditional metal smithing techniques I learned at Parsons School of Design.