As an artist in the 1950s, I first started carving in wood, then welding. The created works were based on biblical themes, fossil forms and images from nature. I began utilizing twenty five years of machine shop experience in 1963, the next phase of my art.
When machining aluminum, light, reflected from its etched surfaces causes movement and color changes. This phenomenon became a new form in the creating of my work. The aesthetics of precision became part of my art. I looked for a pure image that is derived from modern materials. To me, machined aluminum reflects the spirit of our times, the computer, the automated product, and the poetry of space. I try to capture that one fleeting image of a memory, a thought, and fuse it into a lasting reality of sculpture.
I use modules in common with industry: triangles, squares, rectangles, hexagons and circles. Machined textures and consequent development of unitized images in metal or painted wood, gives me an infinite number of combinations in the designs of my work.
Since 1955 I have worked in series, whether wall hangings or free standing structures, exploring a variety of styles and mediums, using many images and disparate materials, but one distinctive characteristic is paramount: the viewer becomes the kinetic force activating the elements of color and dynamics in the composition of the works. ~Max
