Island Life
I have always looked at the world differently. As a kid when I was not working with wood in carpentry projects I was usually hiking through the sand dunes of Cape Cod, and recall always seeing cool pieces of driftwood. That creativity has found a few different outlets throughout my life, but now has become something much more significant with Plum Island Drift.
In grade school I read a series of woodworking books by Eric Sloane, and became more interested in carving, making furniture, and the use of old woodworking hand tools. After college I made a few small wooden sculptures, and kept working on carpentry projects. Over time the sculpture process has escalated.
The concept of found art has always fascinated me. The search for treasure (pirate or otherwise) has taken over a new meaning for me. I am always on the hunt along the river, in the marsh, on the beach, and sometimes even floating in the ocean for pieces of my driftwood treasure. My favorite pieces are the ones that have been transformed from a piece of a deck or dock or tree by the sun, sand, and wind to resemble some living creature. Rarely, I find a piece that jumps out at me, and is nearly complete – I just help it along to its final state.
There are many great artists, especially in New England making museum quality, anatomically correct wildlife sculptures. I love those too, but I much prefer the knarled, beaten down, barnacle encrusted leviathans of the deep. My hope is that the life force within these pieces resonates with people, and they also appreciate the utter coolness of a whale made in part over years by a sand dune. ~Eric
Blast from the past…
Eric circa 1979 on a visit to Plum Island (and yes that is a hunk of driftwood).