the work:
the oracle of faces occupies an area of about six feet by six feet. it is made from fomular covered with multiple layers of vinyl spacking, then multiple layers of acrylic. the disc section is made from 1/8 masonite and is three feet in diameter. through the hole in the blue foam orb, one can see a face. the intent of the sculpture is that the viewer spin the disc, and wait for it to settle on one of the sixteen faces tinted the colors of the spectrum. the only thing the faces have in common is that they are all of importance to the life of the artist- and are, when grouped, somewhat biographical. the disc stops at a face by way of a ratcheting mechanism made from a large 1/2 inch bolt, a delrin washer, a spring and a masonite ratchet wheel and pawl.
the concept:
the oracle of faces is conceived as some sort of synthesis between a wheel of fortune and a tarot card reading. the faces, and the color of the faces, were chosen by a combination of trying to honestly intuitively grasp a person’s essential color, and by viewing the person’s aura in some cases. thus, the pairing of face and color aim to have a certain symbolical and mystical aspect. ideally, though certainly not requisite to view the piece, one would spin the disc with a certain question in mind and indulge the piece by taking the resulting color and face and interpreting it as a one would any sort of divination. while containing somber undertones, the sculpture is ultimately a playful affair and the aesthetic decisions in its construction dictate that ambience. the shape the piece aims to, quite simply, be very bizarre and unfamiliar. it has fantastical elements and does not try to make any sort of spatial sense. however, when this whole armature come down from the ceiling, it eventually concludes on the hole in the spherical main section. in this small area is what is most familiar: the face. this juxtaposition illustrates the connection between our perceptible and customary experience, represented by the colored faces, and the greater universal whole, represented by the imposing and encompassing armature which, in concert, describes the idea of oracular exploit.
the process:
