Baxter Rains Gallery Walk - Thoughts of Evolution

Landscape of Classic Abstract Sculpture

Baxter Rains

PEZ/AVE, Miracles, and New Dimensions

"PEZ / AVE" (1994), mulberry wood on fossilized coral, 14”x24”x7"

Pez/Ave in Spanish means fish/bird. The choice of my

materials depends on what is going on in my head and heart at the time. Sometimes the wood will say it all. Wood is a living form and aesthetically it beckons to be touched.

This piece refers to the evolution when fish came out of the water and grew wings to become birds. Meaning is the transition. That is why I capitalized all the letters in the title. It has to do with me transition-ing from one stage of development to another, a higher awareness, a new form of me. The wood comes from a mulberry tree that had been struck down by lightening. They called me to come and take the tree away.

"When Science is Done, Miracles Remain Miracles"

(2002) mixed media, 56"x91"

This series is a complete departure for me. I have done relief sculpture before but not assemblage works. When I first learned about cloning, I was distressed. With sweeping statements made by scientists, it seemed they had taken away the miracle of birth. The miracle of birth is very meaningful to me. However, knowing that all cloning has to start with a naturally created cell, one not made by man, lets the miracle live. Here the wood figures are without gender but they are distinctive and maintain diversity by the variety of woods used.

The images move in and out of the picture plane. Because of the inter-relatedness of all things, everything has a function that relates to everything else. In the wall sculpture a blue yarn connects the images, hand-to-hand. Where the rope drops represents the void of images, peoples who have died or have pulled out for some reason. In the lower right hand corner, there is a representation of the birth process, the miracle of life.

"Coming into a New Dimension"

(2003) mixed media, 50"x52"

In "Coming into a New Dimension" there is a horizontal delineation about two thirds up from the bottom of the piece. The wood cutout figures above the horizon represent people who have come into a new dimension and now have a divine energy-as angels, maybe. The cutout figures below the horizon form a three dimensional circle moving into the new dimension. The images move in and out and beyond the picture plane. In the lower right hand corner, there are two children watching the event.