28.March.07

Artist Statement

It is my desire to create unique sculptural forms and pieces of the built environment that encourage dialogue, manipulation and intimate interpretation with both colleagues and clients. I see myself as an artisan and designer training in the arts and crafts tradition. In this way I am gathering experience and a wide body of knowledge across many crafts, experimenting with tools and processes, much in the way an architect used to be trained. I have a keen interest in sharing personal reflections, histories and inspirations as a way to glorify the overlooked, the obsolete or the ephemeral: the patina of use, the gathering of water and sedimentation, the fleeting glimpse or cursory glance. Complementary and collaborative, each sculptural, three-dimensional sketch serves as a vehicle for capturing the intensity of a moment: delicate form, gestured movement, beckoning texture, poise and stance. I use materials that gather markings of age, weather with interaction and collect narrations of use: non-ferrous metal, rivets, waxed thread and painted wood. I am invigorated by the process of creating work that varies in scale, spatial arrangement and vernacular adaptation. Whether stood abreast or cradled in the palm of the hand, each piece serves as a vehicle for investigating structure, lightweight framework and fabrication techniques that allow me to create organic forms in the round. Details, textures and curious connections that work on a small scale must be altered to read in proportion to that of the context.

The three years between my tenure of graduate study at the Rhode Island School of Design and my return to Providence to teach at R.I.S.D. and develop my work, mark a period of discovery and inward exploration in the progressive, developing mind of a designer. I am intrigued by the written passage of the traditional travel journal, one where a reader is brought to a time and place initially experienced by the author alone. I strive to present my work in such a way, allowing an intrepid explorer to glimpse into that which inspires my heart and beckons my eye. With each collaborative study, I am honing the relationships that have grown into a tight, cohesive dialogue between hand-rendered sketch, written passage and sculptural form. Currently I am immersed in a period of progressive study whereby I am exploring the inherent tension between metal and wood with respect to disparate precedent in organic form and architectural realization. As a passionate observer, it is my hope that each sculptural vignette affords an evocation of memory, a gesture of elegance and an opportunity to gaze deeper into the soul of an intimate, constructed experience.

I am passionate about teaching others and passing along the skills I have been fortunate enough to be have been taught. I find that I am invigorated by the balance of practicing the making of art with my teaching on the collegiate level, as both serve to inform, excite and challenge the other collaborative practice. I have fond memories of and continue to strive for the excitement of experiencing something for the first time, whether it is welding two pieces of metal together, rough framing of a room addition, the casting of bronze, the creation of a proper perspective drawing or capturing an architectural vantage with a plein-aire watercolor sketch. I believe that if an artist carries a passion for his art and creative ability, such energy can be used to excite and enrich a fresh mind, educate a client and ultimately establish a foundation of thinkers and designers, intimately conscious of the built environment that surrounds us all.

Joshua J. Enck

joshuaenck@yahoo.com