Reconciled Themselves - GINGER MEEK ALLEN metalsmith

Reading The Key Essay 6 of 17

Reconciled Themselves (To Father’s Garden)

STERLING SILVER, WORDS OF VICTORIAN AUTHOR
ETCHED, FABRICATED, HINGED, OXIDIZED
HEIGHT: 2 INCHES

Returning to a favorite form – the box – the artist seems to make the decision to tell the viewer less with this sculptural piece in the Reading The Key series. This represents a departure from the information-packed “Kingdom Mind” or “Weakness Scorned.”

“Reconciled Themselves” is a hinged box construction, bringing to mind an architectural structure, with some personality. The sloping rooftop and lack of symmetry create a sense of wonder and ambiguity. What is it, exactly? Perhaps a barn, or an educational building on a church campus. Whatever it is, surprise lies inside.

Virtual stitches seem to hold the unit together. Upon snapping open the structure, the viewer is greeted by deeply etched text on the floor. It is not a complete passage, or even a complete sentence, but the words are clearly an excerpt from a published writing of some sort. The etching was achieved by an extended acid bath prior to the structural fabrication. The resulting text includes a family name, a garden reference, and a discussion of a decision to be made, after which characters “reconciled themselves.”

The identity of the author, the nature of the characters, and the nuances of the plot are not revealed, allowing the viewer to experience the mystical sensation of being completely lost in story.