MOLOA’A — The final day for artist Roxanne Swentzell proved to be a hectic one in her Moloa’a studio, a converted portion of the former Meadow Gold Dairies milking room. Students from Kula School’s Studio Art class toured the facility,
MOLOA’A — The final day for artist Roxanne Swentzell proved to be a hectic one in her Moloa’a studio, a converted portion of the former Meadow Gold Dairies milking room.
Students from Kula School’s Studio Art class toured the facility, learning about the process of creating the three-dimensional sculpture that will grace the main entryway of the National Museum of the American Indian when it opens in Washington, D.C. on Sept. 21.
Funded by the Smithsonian Institute, the museum will house the largest collection of American Indian artifacts and cultural items, many coming from the museum in New York that closed, that facility already committing close to 500,000 items for the Washington, D.C. museum.
Tim Star, a local architect who has been hosting Swentzell during her tenure here on Kaua’i, said when she got here, she immediately knew this was where the sculpture would be born.
An island familiarization trip to Koke’e yielded the clay that would form the “mass” of the sculpture’s central panel comprised of four figures.
“I know clay,” Swentzell said. “And, I knew Kaua’i had a lot of clay so I thought it would be easier to use the Kaua’i clay instead of shipping in clay that would only add to the cost of the sculpture.”
On that trip to Koke’e, Star said she discovered at least four different colored clays, an aspect that only fueled her excitement over the piece.
Star, explaining the process to the art students, said that due to the climatic conditions on Kaua’i, Swentzell would have an easier time creating the mold that will eventually be bronzed and patinaed before the 24-foot wide sculpture is installed on the museum’s entry wall.
New Mexico, Swentzell’s home, has about 10 per cent humidity which would cause the clay to dry almost as fast as it is applied. But, even with the more ideal working conditions in Kaua’i, both Swentzell and Star’s main tool is a spray bottle of water which is liberally sprayed upon the three-dimensional wall sculpture.
Crack repair is almost a daily ritual as the sculpted piece is examined for developing cracks and repaired while more details are added to the piece.
Swentzell told the art students that eventually, the clay mold will “kill itself,” drying off the wall where it is anchored by a base of mesh wiring with reinforcing bolts and rods on which to build the sculpture.
Before work could begin on the sculpture, Star explained that an exact replica of the museum’s wall had to be built, down to the degree of radius because once the mold was created, there was no room for error.
Add to that, the time element. Star said the mold will be shipped to a foundry in Oklahoma, one of a few in the nation that houses dipping tanks large enough to accomodate the big piece. “They said the mold needs to be in their hands by May 1st if it’s going to meet the mid-September deadline,” Star said.
The completed sculpture will incorporate six figures in a grouping of three – a central panel with four figures, two males, and two females, flanked on either side by Pueblo dancers, the arrangement linked together by eight small masks.
“The central four figures are to honor all of the indigenous peoples of the Americas,” Swentzell said. “Two males and two females clasp right hands in the center of their natural spin creating the center of the world.”
“With their left arms, each figure reaches out to four directions. This piece symbolizes the main concepts of the native world – the circle, balance, a spiral in motion, and the four directions,” Swentzell explained.
On either side of these four figures stand two Pueblo dancers.
“Because this is a theatre wall, I thought there should be ‘performers’ (although we do not think of them as such) to acknowledge this place in the museum,” Swentzell said.
“Because I am from Santa Clara Pueblo, I chose Rain Dancers – one female, one male. They symbolize life.”
“As the four figures spiral around and create the center of the world, these two Dancers show how life is celebrated,” Swentzell said.
“Eight masks are placed between the central figures and the two dancers, four on each side. These faces are like footprints – tracks of the People migrating across the continent creating all of the different tribes. Each mask will carry markings that symbolize different areas such as two from up North, two from the East, two from the West, and two from the South,” Swentzell concluded.
The central panel took approximately two months to create, her final day pushed up due to a family emergency that nececitated her return to New Mexico on Monday evening.
Swentzell will return in March at which time the remaining two Pueblo Dancers will take shape. Star said the eight masks will be done in New Mexico.
As the constant task of repairing cracks, adding details, and spraying water continued, a steady stream of Kula School students waited in line to view the piece that glistened from the water in the afternoon sunlight that bathed the piece through an open door of the Moloa’a studio.
But, through all the questions and the rapidly-approaching time of her departure, she smiles, “It’s good to be going home.”
