Angel at the Precipice
 

This sculpture is part of a board series entitled A Mythology of My Own Making, which includes sculptures, paintings, installations and writings.

 

“Angel at the Precipice” came to life from remnants, and cutoff bronze strands left over from earlier castings. They seemed to have had some misty, elemental aspirations, and an angel kept shining into view, so I followed.

 

Later, as it sits on a studio bench, a ray of light comes through a window late in the year, low in the sky, and shines a gold moment almost singularly on the emerging piece. A stream of light that came my way from incomprehensible distances at unfathomable speeds. As it struck the sculpture, the Angel became a beautiful little cipher.

 

I had been walking near cliffs in the mountains near my studio at that time. As I began to place the Angel on various stones, I thought about how close we can come to the edge and how we need to find a path back to safer ground on occasion. You get a thrill staring over the edge and appreciate the clarity from knowing where you stand and where the bottom is. There is no ambiguity about that space and what it means.

 

Like me, the Angel gets close to the precipice and leans over to look. Suspended in the moment of decision, does she consider jumping, or does she walk away? We all stand there at times in our lives, if only metaphorically. Perhaps she backs away and is stronger for it.

 

And perhaps I need to allow that maybe, just maybe, the Angel stood on my shoulder when I needed her most.