My friend Robin Larson stopped by for a driveway gathering in these Covid-19 times and brought me a gift she could not pass up at a flea market. I love masks and this little mask was so intriguing and painted so colorful that I immediately decided to make a piece based on it.
Last year when I was making paper in the driveway I made two things: an old tin pan full of paper pulp that I intended to use as a substrate and a baking mold of a heart that I used to make a pulp heart.
I decided also to take the plunge on another thing I wanted to try: resin.
So I painted the heart. The substrate got painted and stamped to my satisfaction. Then after laying a bed of nails, I poured the resin into the tin and let it sit.
I also painted the mask, highlighting the colors it was already painted. I added two chair back posts and some shredded cardboard into the mix as well.
At this point I thought the piece was done...but something still bothered me about it. I found some wood trim in the basement along with another chair post and added them to the tin. This was much more the direction I wanted this piece to go.
Thus we have The Messiah of My Unhappiness. It is 20"H X 24"W X 5"D and weighs a ton! The title is from the poem Wrong Question by Tony Hoagland.