Wood Sculptures

Artists Describing Their Art:

Anh Tran - My sculpture addresses a symbolic language: visually - Symbol, Material, and Fragment as metaphor to represent on human value of legend, history, culture, and myth. It is an interaction sculpture space in which the viewers are invited to actively engage as a means of completing the artwork. My work mainly is the installation and concept work inheriting value of traditional sculptures. Currently, I pay attention on human relationships - the main subject matter that presents in work at different levels from the relationship of people to people; between human beings to nature; the bond of people to God in timeless. Men of all ages experience the same knotty relationship that comes from the endless struggle for life, freedom and the pursuit of happiness. On my experience I think that each person lives in a knot of relationships, bearing the traces of successes and failures, love and loss, generosity and vileness, pleasure and pain, happiness and misfortune, in an ever changing, yet repetitious cycle. Relationships are continually changing -- expanding and contracting as they are being formed, challenged, mended, healed, maintained, and even ended in both time and space. In general, I think of human life and relationships as being fragmented forms as well. ...

Charlie Tu - Several years ago, I got the patent certificate of Yin Yang woodcarving in China although I am Norwegian Chinese. I am grateful to the state for its recognition of my art talent. For me, woodcarving is not just an art form, but a sacred communion with the every soul of the tree. I believe that wood is alive and with woodcarvings, it will stay alive forever, as a testament to the beauty of life. Through the interplay of light and shadow, my Yin Yang woodcarvings are a window into the mysterious workings of the universe, where everything is connected in a grand tapestry of life. Each stroke is a dance, a delicate balance between my vision and the natural patterns of the woods grain. Painting the figures in the woodcarving is the most challenging part, requiring skill and precision to create the small but prominent points that bring each piece to life. Each detail, no matter how small, plays a crucial role in the authenticity of the final product. With a deep reverence for the fusion of Chinese and Western cultures, I believe that woodcarving is the perfect embodiment of this cultural exchange. The art captures the essence of both ...