Ashley DeLoach, Student Work, Sculpture I

“The Gazing Hollow”
Wood
7' x 4' x 2.5'

Once I completed the construction of the cube, I fought with the idea that it should be painted or adorned in some way. Weeks passed and I played with several ideas, feedback from others danced in my mind. After writing about the church Santo Stefano, and doing some further research of Romanesque buildings I discovered why I was leaning toward leaving the surface in its current state of natural wood.  Santo Stefano, in Assisi and many other Franciscan churches are known for simplicity. The Church of Santo Stefano has bare stonewalls, with little décor, this is entirely unlike all other churches in Italy. Even Romanesque architecture once had color but is now striped of all color and reveals its stonewalls. These structures impacted me the most in on my trip, the raw, and undecorated interior and exteriors. Along with the minimal color and décor, the large-scale structure creates a presence in its space. I wanted this piece to reflect the magnitude of the sacred spaces I visited. The idea of my piece is a direct response to the feelings I had about scale and space when visiting Romanesque architecture in Italy.