Gar Waterman

Connecticut boasts a rich history of manufacturing pioneered by the likes of Eli Whitney and Samuel Colt as well as by more contemporary entrepreneurs like Joseph Gerber and strategic material producer OPM. The CNC technical skills taught at The Manufacturing Center will play a critical role in providing the skills that will help Connecticut Industry to continue this legacy.

 Manufacturing machinery typically generates heat. Dissipating this heat is frequently done through a heat sink with cooling fins located somewhere on the apparatus. ‘Heat Sink’ is inspired by the precise arrangements of planer repeated forms that characterize heat sink cooling fins. In this sculptural metaphor, the building itself becomes the 'machine' and the ‘heat’ generated by the creative energy within is dispersed by the sculpture, which is designed to resemble a radially arrayed heat sink. A glowing green function light in cast glass indicates the 'machine'/building is 'on' and doing its job teaching the next generation of machinists. With a Claes Oldenburg-esque paradigm shift in scale ‘Heat Sink’ is a three dimensional art work rendered from an implied function and fabricated with the same CNC production technology that defines the Manufacturing Center's mission.

Two of my insect sculptures are part of an exhibit in the vitrines at SFO. These are museum curated exhibits that are always interesting and very well done. Up through mid August, if you are traveling through SFO I hope you have a chance to see them.

My Feral Seed sculptures will be on view through early March in Mystic, CT. The room that they are in is beautifully proportioned and the installation really looks great. The Mystic Museum of Art is on Water St. just off of the main street in historic downtown Mystic.

Art inspired by nature has always celebrated a vision that by definition is fleeting, but as biodiversity vanishes at an unprecedented rate from above and below the water line, art that describes it takes on a new kind of political urgency. Much of the marine life that serves as subject matter for my sculpture is now threatened by ocean acidification caused by CO2 absorption, part of the larger issue of Climate Change.  Unique among the many pressing challenges we face, Climate Change will absolutely and unequivocally affect all of us. Specific examples within the greater picture can help us to understand a very complicated phenomenon, and this is where art and science together have an opportunity to engage and inform more effectively than either might be able to on their own. Canaries in a Blue Coal Mine’s dialogue between art and science will, I hope, give you pause for thought and a slightly better understanding of ocean acidification and how it will effect some of these extraordinary creatures with whom we share the planet.

 I have been working with a team that submitted the winning design for this competition. Very exciting! The sculpture will be part of an extensive repurposing of an old mill site in Willimantic, CT. Details at the link below.

http://landartgenerator.org/lagi-willimantic.html