My sculpture is based on the poem CONSTANTLY RISKING ABSURDITY ,
by Lawrence Ferlinghetti. It was included in his book CONEY ISLAND OF THE MIND.
This project called for a book but I used this piece of Beat poetry because it
does a wonderful job of explaining the role an artist plays in our society.
The Poem should be read from the base in an upward, spiraling pattern.
The matchbox illustrates a passage in Like Water For Chocolate
by Laura Esquivel that says, "...each of us is born with a box of matches
inside us but we can't strike them all by ourselves...we need oxygen and a
candle to help." The items inside the matchbox represent the main
character's primary desire...cooking. So enclosed are a wooden spoon and
a whisk, along with recipes in "monthly installments" which proceed each
chapter of the book.
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Jennifer Swanson