(NOTE: Someone with an eye for my work over the past few years, may recall a similar piece that was called "In The Back of My Mind." NO...this is not a re-work of that piece. Delightfully that piece was purchased the year it was made. I've included a thumbnail of it...or you check out my collection of "Strange Angels" for more of the story/process of it.)-------------------------------------------------------------
So, back to "....the Beginning." Some months ago I disassembled a typewriter -- what a hoot! It took days to hack through it, carefully retaining all the parts.
(Some people simply cut off the keys for a cheap and fast thrill. Not me -- I wanted all the springs, and mechanism for future projects.)
As with most of my art, the piece tells a story. In this case, the visual pun plays with the idea of "the Word" as both literal and symbolic concepts. While the typewriter parts/keys suggest letters and words, the baby head suggest an organic incarnation and a head full of possibility. The typewriter keys are form three old machines, but I also included one of my coveted IBM Selectric "heads," and some contemporary computer hardware.
By using a rusty old small animal trap and bike gear I suggest that we trap and process words, symbols and ideas in our head. We then 'tap' them out to the world as messages about ourselves.
