alabama white marble, italian white marble, spanish black marble, french red marble, slumped glass, fossil shark teeth
12" high x 19" long
Don Dougan
stone boat series
The boat or ship is both a vessel to hold things (containing either cargo or passengers) and a conveyance or means to transport those things from one place to another.
For me the vessel is a metaphor for experience and a container for memories. My father, who served in the navy before I was born, was interested in ships and ship models, and he had a number of books about ships.
As a child I was fascinated with the fold-out pages with drawings of the hull plans for different types of vessels. I built ship models from kits, acquired a couple of old models from my grandfather, and made crude wooden toys to float in the stream behind the house.
GODSPEED BARSOOM: DEJAH
red italian marble, spanish black marble,
alabama white marble, belgian black marble
12" high x 28" long
Whether the initial focus of the work is memories of early adolescent fantasies about the fictional Mars of Edgar Rice Burroughs (with exotic red princesses forever in need of rescue), or figuratively 'walking the plank' on a pirate ship, the stone boats contain deeper and more universal references layered within the image.
LONG TREASURE: GRANDFATHERS' COLOR BOX
indiana limestone, gilt watercolor tin, glass, resin, black granite, walnut
8" high x 26" long x 8" wide
Both of my grandfathers were artists (painters), and both encouraged me to explore my own talent when I was young.
Part of my mixed heritage is Scandanavian, and when I was young I read about the archaeological finds of Viking chieftans being buried in their vessels, and the stories about Nordic heros burned on funeral pyres.
ICONOCLASTIC YACHT: BOOTSTRAPPING
champlain black marble, indiana limestone, texas red sandstone, found iron spike, cast bronze
23" high x 18" long, x 6" wide
Sometimes a found object seems to be a piece to a puzzle the unconscious is trying to assemble. The shape or the form of the object enigmatically alludes to concepts and emotions that are only half-defined in the conscious mind.
In the search for resolution the addition of matching pieces to the puzzle are fitted and compared.
