Facing the Desert and Thomas Merton

Facing the Desert and Thomas Merton

I owe a great deal to Thomas Merton. I chose the title of Facing the Desert, my exhibition at [Artspace] at Untitled, based on the quote from Merton in my artist's statement.

Installation View: Untitled (Rope Nets), 108" H. x 54" Diameter, Rope, ©2002

"In The Silent Life, Thomas Merton states that 'the monastic horizon is clearly the horizon of the desert…His [the monk’s] eyes are not turned towards the battlefields in the plain [rather] they gaze out upon the desert…' ”

-Donald G. Longcrier, Facing the Desert, [Artspace] at Untitled2001

Installation View: 

Front: Untitled (Carpenter's Chalk Pile), 15.5" H. x 45" W. x 45" D, Wood, beeswax, chalk, ©2002

Back: Untitled (Bridge Timbers and Yellow Balls), 108" H. x 186" W. x 54" D, Wood, metal, rope, ©1996

Installation View: 

Front: Untitled (Measuring Tape, Tape), 7.5" Diameter. x 3" D., Measuring tape, paper tape, ©2002

Middle: Untitled (Steel Disk), 44" Diameter. x 3.5" D., Steel, cloth, wood, ©2001

Rear: Untitled (Yellow Boxes), 4.5" H. x 240" W. x 16" D., Steel, ©1996

The First Tape Measure Piece

Untitled (Measuring Tape,Tape) was the first piece in which I used a tape measure. The piece is constructed using a roll of Kraft Tape and a Lufkin 50' cloth tape measure. The tape measure is wound continuously around and through the tape roll creating a spiral of numbers that repeat almost every turn. 

 Untitled (Measuring Tape,Tape) , 7.5"Diameter x 3" D., Measuring tape, paper tape, 2002

Installation view:

Untitled (Measuring Tape,Tape), 7.5"Diameter x 3" D., Measuring tape, paper tape, 2002

Untitled (Steel Disk), 44" Diameter. x 3.5" D., Steel, cloth, wood, 2001