Skull

2021  37” x 24” x 33”  bronze edition of 9     available

“In the 1940s my paternal grandfather, Lloyd Phelps Sr., bought the original homestead on Roberts Island in the Delta of Central California. The sales contract stated that they had to live in the original house which was built in the 1800s. A skull with unknown origins was on the property when he bought it. For as long as I can remember, the skull was in the shop on top of a cabinet alongside an old bakelite radio. I’ve been told that at times it sported a fedora and cigar although I never personally saw that. Most of my artwork is in some way rooted in my history on the farm, the bronze skull is no exception. This piece is about twenty years in the making, I started it sometime back in the 1990s. I was somewhat surprised by the beauty inherent in elements of the anatomy such as the various nerve openings in the bone. Also surprising is the asymmetry and seeming fluidity of the bone structure."