Bioforms SERIES: ARTIST'S STATEMENTS

Apothecary is an early piece that initiated my desire to open the door to the idea of releasing unnecessary fear. These are fears, often instinctual, of things that in reality are most often harmless. Fear in humans many times generates a mindless "smash and burn" response. I recognize that this is part of the vestigial, instinctual ape hard wiring in every human brain. I'd like to see that knee-jerk response more often replaced with healthy curiosity, interest and knowledge.

The specific fear explored in 'Apothecary' is the fear of insects and spiders. In this piece the idea of these small creatures are developed in clay and wire, all very safe to look at, explore and think about without concern that they will move in any way. This gives the human brain time to stop mindlessly reacting... to pause... and hopefully, begin engaging with higher functions of curiosity and intellect.

There is a second storytelling layer in this piece, something that the child in me delights in making a part of much of my work.

Apothecary represents a wall in an ancient, decaying lab. The rough stone can now be seen peeking out from behind what is left of the decorative plaster. Built into this wall are niches, each containing a specimen of life. This lab, in fact, exists on an alien planet. The human scientist who used to work in this lab is long dead now by thousands of years - the lab abandoned as the planet entered a stage depleted of the rich flora and fauna that once existed there.

The collected specimens have dried and faded, loosing the vibrant colors they once had, until they looked much the same as the decaying wall behind them. All but one. A species commonly known as The Seed Bearer. The Seed Bearer has the unique ability to carry samples of every type of DNA from its world.

This particular species, much like the tardigrade, could go into a dormant phase during times of stress. When conditions become favorable again, this vital creature in its alien world awakens, and begins to cast forth the spores of life it carries inside it.

The world begins again, another turn on the spiral is completed.

Sylvan Song 

Sylvan  means 'of the forest'. This piece contains 74 unique clay beetles. On a  personal level, I was thinking about my Mom, who was the reason I didn't develop a fear of insect life. They were a normal part of the world and she never treated them as a "bad" thing. 

On the canvas I have  created an imagined “Bug Ball”. Best experienced if the viewer knows the  music by the band Heart which is also called ‘Sylvan Song’ (from their  1977 ‘Little Queen’ album). While hearing the notes (either in the mind  or on a handheld device), visualize the fantasy beetles spinning and  twirling with each other in a secret evening dance. 

Each beetle is created from my imagination and is not an attempt to accurately recreate any actual beetle on earth. During the process of sculpting this piece, I allowed those who follow me online the opportunity to act as "imaginary entomologists" in a competition to name each beetle. The result is that every beetle on the canvas has a name which can be found on the image map below this panel.

Juror's Notes from Showcases: 

Karen Oremus: "Frankie Wolf's mixed media work, Sylvan Song, is an intimate work that can be appreciated and interpreted in a variety of fashions. This work appeared to act as a metaphor for the environment, whether it be positive or negative. Are the insect creatures eating away at the surface and multiplying, or are they disappearing ? Looking up Sylvan Song on the internet also drew me to learn that Sylvan Song is a simple, visual-narrative puzzle solving game about renewing colorful life to a dead, blackened world. Perhaps the artist was trying to link this work to the game in an attempt to indicate or reflect upon the current world we live in?"

Since my beetles are  imaginary versions rather than strict recreations from life, I allowed  my patrons to adopt the role of junior entomologists on an exoplanet. They then submitted options to name each one.

Below are the names that were chosen:

(01) Ridgewing Nuzzler - Elizabeth Barfield 

(02) Tasseled Lace-Cased Sand Weevil - Kimberly Case 

(03) Tripent Waterbeetle - Elizabeth Barfield 

(04) Stubble-Puffer - Phil Allison 

(05) Ridge-Shelled Lunarbeetle “Queen Mab Bug” - Kimberly Case 

(06) Gnobbly Pinchmouth - Maranda Cromwell 

(07) Woolly Mop - Beverly Pott 

(08) Common Bump - Kimberly Case 

(09) Blackberry Bumbler - Elizabeth Barfield 

(10) Small Shelled Gimlet - Jeannie Stricklin 

(11) Long Toothed Bumpershoot - Jeannie Stricklin 

(12) Tri-Ridged Whelk Clipper - Kimberly Case 

(13) Pine Cone Back - Heather Beschizza 

(14) Crescent Roll - Erin Bickley Taylor 

(15) Empress Helm - Maranda Cromwell 

(16) Ringed Gargoyle Weevil - Maranda Cromwell 

(17) Bump Pisghetti - Bryce Von Herndon 

(18) Turkey Fly - Bryce Von Herndon 

(19) Pincher Shield - Heather Beschizza 

(20) Shovel-Tailed Snapper - Kimberly Case 

(21) Tri-Optic Wobbling Billow - Jeannie Stricklin 

(22) Skits Scooter Fly - Bryce Von Herndon 

(23) Pleated Scarab - Elizabeth Barfield 

(24) Great Horned Flowering O'Keeffe - Jeannie Stricklin 

(25) Wicked Woolie Weevil - Heather Beschizza 

(26) Lovecraftian Sieve - Maranda Cromwell 

(27) Honeydipper Gourd Borer - Elizabeth Barfield 

(28) Boomerang Jane - Phil Allison 

(29) Spiny Pincher - Bryce Von Herndon 

(30) Nut Shelled Borer - Kimberly Case 

(31) Barnacled Tooter - Phil Allison 

(32) Fleur Tongue Saplicker - Maranda Cromwell 

(33) Flat Sandy Fleetle - Bryce Von Herndon 

(34) Touseled TriClops - Elizabeth Barfield 

(35) Heart of Gold - Kimberly Case 

(36) Thistle Creeper - Elizabeth Barfield 

(37) Hammerhead Ripple Hopper - Maranda Cromwell 

(38) Pokey Ammonite - Bryce Von Herndon 

(39) Imperial Cruiser - Jeannie Stricklin 

(40) Leaf-Crinkler - Heather Beschizza 

(41) Skirted Creeper - Elizabeth Barfield 

(42) Whelk Borer - Kimberly Case 

(43) Manti Diablo - Phil Allison 

(44) Flippered Terrapin Midge - Kimberly Case 

(45) Golden Brundle - Brenda Konitzer 

(46) Golfer's Bane - Maranda Cromwell 

(47) Common Dalek - Kimberly Case 

(48) Fluted Dollop - William Herlong 

(49) Gearbox - Phil Allison 

(50) Swallowtail Lunarbeetle - William Herlong 

(51) Tentacled Marley - Maranda Cromwell 

(52) Coiled Peeper - Kimberly Case 

(53) Hammerhead Duster - Jeannie Stricklin 

(54) Reverse Prayer Bearbug - Heather Beschizza 

(55) Asparaflea - Phil Allison 

(56) Cacoona - Bryce Von Herndon 

(57) Trilospiral - Maranda Cromwell 

(58) Marley Mite - Phil Allison 

(59) Grand Looper - Maranda Cromwell 

(60) Crenellated Scarab - Kimberly Case 

(61) Green Fedora - William Herlong 

(62) Snuffling Brindle - Jeannie Stricklin 

(63) Pleated Mite - Kimberly Case 

(64) Petal Fly - Lisa Lannen 

(65) Cross-Hatch Bombardier - Jeannie Stricklin 

(66) Elongated Squash Burrower - Kim Oakley Case 

(67) Droplink - Dorene Boltz 

(68) Winged Skull Scarab - Kimberly Case 

(69) Frilled Beeskull - Maranda Cromwell 

(70) Bee-Drill - Bryce Von Herndon 

(71) Shufflehunter - Dorene Boltz 

(72) Wintertwist - Dorene Boltz 

(73) Coral Back - Dorene Boltz 

(74) Flying Shoe - Dorene Boltz 

Vinegar Light' was created for the January 2018 production of the Southern Exposure New Music Series.  By invitation only, artists are challenged to create brand new work in response to the evening's scheduled program.  Vinegar Light was directly inspired by  Chinese Temple from Síppal, Dobbal, Nádihegedűvel by György Ligeti (on poems by Sándor Weöres).  

A note about Southern Exposure:  

Award winning Southern Exposure is an event held at the University of South Carolina School of Music. Consisting of four concert events per year, experimental musicians from around the globe are invited to perform and a local visual artist is curated by Sara Winsted to create new work inspired by the scheduled selection of music. The January 2018 event featured musicians Duo Cortona (Rachal Calloway, mezzo-soprano and Ari Streisfeld, violin). This piece was a part of that event and the information below relates to the particular composition used to create it. 

Artist's Statement:  

This may be my personal favorite of the work I completed in time for Southern Exposure. Simple in concept, I used the words from the poem to create stream of consciousness images in my mind. I immediately saw warm amber colors with bronze and blue-green highlights. Dabs of

black and white. Images of Chinese and Egyptian architecture. Scarabs. Old cities and ancient languages. Libraries and knowledge. Inlaid turquoise. Night insects. Memories lost and found again many times. Uncarded wool and heavy yarn. Fine silk and rough woven cloth. Bricks made of yellow mud and straw. Tintinnabulation. Serenity and gravitas. Questions and answers. Prophets and pilgrims traveling the same roads. Journeys and destinations.

Third movement: Kinai Templom (Chinese Temple)

Poem by Sándor Weöres.

(Hungarian)

Szent fonn Negy majd

kert lenn fem mely

bö tag cseng: csond

lomb: ej Szep, leng,

tart jo, Jö, mint

zold kek Hir, hult

szarny, arny, Rang, hang.

(translation)

Saint high Four hence

field down bronze deep

broad far ring: Still

leaves: fair Night, swings

full comes, Good, like

green blue News, cool

wings shade. Rank, sound.