Son of a watercolorist, I grew up surrounded by art, artists, and immense creativity. I spent my youth painting with my father and traveling with my family to art fairs on the east coast. I soon became interested in Alexander Calder and wire sculpture as it bridges both linear drawing and sculpture, the two and three dimensions.
Hand-modeled resin, wire, repurposed found objects, glass, welded-steel and negative space are integrated into whimsical, surreal and sublime sculptural forms. Resin is hand-sculpted into the wire and then painted; no molds are used and all pieces are one of a kind. With only needle-nosed pliers, the wire is cold-worked, painstakingly hand-manipulated, wrapped and woven to itself. Wire is bent freehand without the use of inner structures, molds or forms of any kind. The wire forms a bridge between line drawing and sculpture. Surfaces are either hand-painted or patinas are obtained with acid baths. All copper and aluminum wire is recycled. Steel and found objects are repurposed items saved from scrap yards and given new life and meaning.
My work attempts to explore the boundaries of magical realism and dreams. I strive to reveal the antique time machines of the mind. Fusing elements of folk art and surrealism, ideas arise from dreams, observation and nature. My creative energy is about growth and perceiving this energy with intuition. The challenge, the art, is attempting to translate this mystery through the process of my sculpture.
My work resides in private and corporate collections worldwide.
cotefineart.com
Bakersville, North Carolina