Robert Penning

Art form: 3-D

Medium: Sticks, paint, fiber, mache'

Year created: 2011

Description of work:

Created by community members ranging in age from young children to senior adults, this collaborative piece shows the unifying power of our individual stories and universal expressions of love.

Over 7,000 sticks were decorated by over 7,000 community members in honor of someone important to each artist. Small mixed media figures represent a person of influence in the artists’ lives. Life-size wood guardians placed around the sticks and smaller figures stand witness to the stories and memories represented in this piece.

The work as a whole connotes several cultural and artistic references tied to a broad range of spiritual artwork. As each artist poured their creative spirit into the structures the work became a collective expression of love.