It’s two weeks later now since I last added to the “family”. I had planned a different post to follow the last, but changed my mind after visiting the Falls of the Ohio today. Anticipating arriving on the scene…what would I find? Would everything be knocked down again? Would there be broken chunks and bits of Styrofoam mingled with the fresh fallen willow leaves? Wonderfully, I discovered that the group was not only intact, but had been added to. The first image in this post was the tableau as I found it. The figure on the left was given an enormous phallus and a completely new figure holding a whiskey bottle was on the right. I removed the polystyrene member on the left figure more because it upset my sense of proportion and seemed superfluous! Shortly, after arriving, I had visitors and we had a nice conversation together and they let me take their picture next to my sculptures.
This family was visiting the Falls from Cincinnati and seemed to enjoy what I was doing. It is because of them, that I changed the order of my posts…just in case they check in on the riverblog and want to see themselves in this context. I don’t know their names and this really isn’t that important. I did notice the lady with the sunglasses spoke with a Dutch accent and we had a short talk about the current state of the Netherlands. I’m interested in this because my mom is Dutch and I was born in Amsterdam. You just never know who you might run into at the Falls of the Ohio. Before leaving, the eldest son improvised a quick figure of his own and added it to the group.
Here’s a look at the happy family left on their own in the woods. Because the branches are getting bare, it’s far easier to see the bright white of the Styrofoam and I wonder how many people walked past them this summer because they just didn’t see them through all the vegetation?
I did take a close-up of the whiskey drinking figure on the right and I think he is quite tipsy! He has that glazed look in his eyes.
I just noticed he’s smoking a pipe too! I made a few pieces of my own, but did not add them to the Styro-family today. I constructed a bird (which I will show you later) and this figure that is wearing a crown or crest. The eyes are small green plastic bottle caps that I put coal into for pupils.
It’s not the most memorable piece I ever made, but it does mark the season. Today was slightly windy and the leaves were dropping all around me. The sky was getting overcast and the first real promise of rain in weeks was in the air. I eventually left this figure by a stand of young cottonwood trees whose leaves were turning yellow. The smiling figure became a positive affirmation of the day and its arms are raised in tribute.
I came across one other creation made by another visitor by connecting driftwood in the sand and seemed a nice way to end this post. Peace to you!
Artist at Exit 0 Riverblog 