May 20, 2015

Artist Pat Collins will be at Penn Cove Gallery on Thursday, June 11 to discuss the inspiration and woodworking methods behind his wood sculptures.

Collins has been sculpting wood for over 30 years. Working in the genre of stylized sculpture, he approaches his work with two goals. First he strives to showcase the beauty and natural figure of fine hardwoods, without being tied to the restrictions of realism. Then, to add a measure of ambiguity, he attempts to draw viewers into the creations, allowing them the opportunity to interpret and ponder what they’re seeing.

In the words of Vincent Van Gogh, “Leave the obvious vague and exaggerate the essential.” For Collins, “the essential” is the wood itself.