Featured Artist
James C. Bassett
in
"A Winter's Solace"
Benign Reflections
By
Pete Milosovich © 2012
The artist resists, subverts, denies, and even ignores the ‘material’ culture in favor of celebrating the intellectual space created through art. If nothing else, since commerce is central to ‘artistic’ survival, beauty for its own sake fulfills deep and personal desires for both artist and spectator alike. From sculpture gardens to the splendid mystery that binds people to specific objets d’art these welcome intrusions of humanity reside in something tangible that displaces space while simultaneously defining it – geometric, non-linear, abstract, and surreal or in the case of James C. Bassett’s expressive work the natural order of things becomes reorganized, integrated, and transformed…but never completely.
By
Pete Milosovich © 2012
The artist resists, subverts, denies, and even ignores the ‘material’ culture in favor of celebrating the intellectual space created through art. If nothing else, since commerce is central to ‘artistic’ survival, beauty for its own sake fulfills deep and personal desires for both artist and spectator alike. From sculpture gardens to the splendid mystery that binds people to specific objets d’art these welcome intrusions of humanity reside in something tangible that displaces space while simultaneously defining it – geometric, non-linear, abstract, and surreal or in the case of James C. Bassett’s expressive work the natural order of things becomes reorganized, integrated, and transformed…but never completely.
From metal to earthen clay in The Silence Beyond a distinct interplay takes place between the interdependent materials, not to mention the significance of a surreal structure within the confines of a peculiar, yet entirely satisfying cross section. Perhaps serving as a tangible bridge between the ‘real’ and the intellect, sculpture produces the boldest examples of form and contour, effectively freeing our ravenous intellects. Purging our sensibilities within the fires of imagination, the renewed intellect bathes in the glory of existential beauty. Too numerous to limit oneself to concrete definitions sculpture draws our attention to so many avenues of expression; integrated in ways that never stray too far from the complex relationships all objects have in space and time to the people that plan, purchase, and observe. It all depends on how anyone of us at any given time chooses to define the sacred spaces we cherish.
Something as universal as ‘pure’ beauty, not the primal longing for nature that always seems to guide us home, but the absolute necessity for the constructed, real, three dimensional, and solid manifestations of manipulated reality - meaning sculpted out of…meaning stone or the rich, extremely dense nature of the mahogany used by Mr. Bassett. In the more obvious examples, such as the Solace of Wounded Heart I and II our dependency on nature, even when rendered symbolically, facilitates a sense of psychic integration in defiance of the stark waste lands of our squandered environment(s).
Something as universal as ‘pure’ beauty, not the primal longing for nature that always seems to guide us home, but the absolute necessity for the constructed, real, three dimensional, and solid manifestations of manipulated reality - meaning sculpted out of…meaning stone or the rich, extremely dense nature of the mahogany used by Mr. Bassett. In the more obvious examples, such as the Solace of Wounded Heart I and II our dependency on nature, even when rendered symbolically, facilitates a sense of psychic integration in defiance of the stark waste lands of our squandered environment(s).
From the Venus de Milo, to Michelangelo’s David, to Picasso’s famous Untitled work sculpture will forever continue to assert the human experience as splendid manifestations of humanity at the heart of indefinable or elusive notions of beauty. Sculpture can be held in the palm of ones hand or it can be marveled at in the unique area it compliments. In James C. Basset’s transformative world where distinct elements in nature become ‘integrated,’ where the allusion to ‘painting’ remains a vague if not comical reminder, we become reminded of the vital role nature will always play in ‘Art.’
The smooth, seamless contours between wood and stone – polished smooth in Learning How to Drown entices us to experience the piece through the more pragmatic area of touch; emphasizing the added dimension of sensuality to the oeuvre of the undernourished intellect. Sculpture by its very nature longs to be touched, and not just contemplated; molded ‘reality’ in the literal sense that paradoxically reinforces the power of contemplation as our only protection against the ravenous hooks of widespread social manipulation. Regardless of the nature of our current predatory reality, sculpture remains forever ingrained in the positive spaces we seek to inhabit with our curious intellects.
In our current age of absurdity the power of illusion reigns supreme, subverting the truth to such disparate levels that ravenous intellects shutter at the thought of feeding on hollow deceptions representing nothing. Yet, at the very end of a long line of dwindling symbols the truth remains- beneath the veils of illusions designed to fragment and splinter our sensibilities. This celebration of culture, which ‘Art’ ennobles manifests into something completely different, ambiguous, powerful, and sublime; standing proud in the limelight of so much contemplation ‘Art’ blesses the faithful like nothing else…
In our current age of absurdity the power of illusion reigns supreme, subverting the truth to such disparate levels that ravenous intellects shutter at the thought of feeding on hollow deceptions representing nothing. Yet, at the very end of a long line of dwindling symbols the truth remains- beneath the veils of illusions designed to fragment and splinter our sensibilities. This celebration of culture, which ‘Art’ ennobles manifests into something completely different, ambiguous, powerful, and sublime; standing proud in the limelight of so much contemplation ‘Art’ blesses the faithful like nothing else…
