The majority of my designs are large scale, with the bulk of my work falling in the six to nine foot range; it is my niche and my comfort zone. Over the years, I have scaled several of my sculptures up to sixteen feet in height for municipalities and public locations and the challenge involved with that is always fun.

Passages is unique in that it was originally commissioned for All Care, a VNA & Hospice Center in Lynn, MA. The one I built and installed for them in December 2011, was seventeen feet tall. I have since scaled it down to a more typical size for me and my private clients.

The design idea for Passages had been kicking around in my head for quite some time. I wanted a sculpture that could hold a piece of artwork inside of it. Specifically, I wanted something that would house a piece of glass art from Duncan Mclellan, a very talented fellow artist and good friend of mine. Where the Cor-Ten keyhole is right now, I had originally planned a recessed shelf for artwork. The conversion to a keyhole seemed fitting and right for All Care, as they offer services within their clients’ homes.

The top flair of the two arms and the connecting piece across the top have a very distinct Asian feel to it and as a result, my original name for Passages was Do-Joe. This name didn’t feel appropriate for the All Care piece. “Passages” made a much more fitting name as Lynn is known as the Gateway City and the services offered by the VNA and Hospice center are a passage/gateway for many people.

Once again, I have used different finishes on the different surfaces of the sculpture to give it some depth and contrast. It has a matte finish on the front and outsides with a contrasting flip-flop on the insides as well as on the piece across the top. This technique really helps to bring a new dimension to the work and is one of the reasons I enjoy working with Stainless so much.