Intimate / Infinite

Intimate / Infinite ~ paper clay, pigment, wood, hole. Advent 2015

In the season of Advent, we ponder the mystery of our relationship with that which is Infinite.  Here is the poem that goes with this piece of art:

The idea for this piece came to me many years ago when I saw an exhibit of works by artist Anish Kapoor.  One of his pieces was a large object that hung on the wall, the front-facing surface of which was coated with black pigment so dark that you could not see it.  I stood in front of this piece for a long time, straining my eyes to be able to perceive the surface; was is flat? concave? a hole in the wall?  It was a remarkable experience; not being able to see something that you knew was there.  It struck me as a great visual metaphor for what we call “God;” no matter how convinced we are that God exists, we cannot verify it by the perceptions of our senses.  It felt like looking into infinity.