There was a time when I was attracted to the type of screening-metal one finds in hardware stores; in my studio building hallway, a large pile of this metal was left behind. I was interested in manipulating it like I manipulated terracotta clay. I worked intuitively to develop forms that I could relate to. I was also intrigued with the objects I often found on my street daily when I returned from Harlem. I liked combining tree forms like thin sticks and chunky logs, with the large pine cones I found on a trip to Yosemite National Park. I like towers and cages that contain hints of nature embedded or attached to their structures. In 2007 I collected autumn leaves, which I then painted to preserve with gel medium front and back. I then covered each leaf with gold acrylic paint. I enjoy making piles of leaves in a take-off on the Autumn leaves one sees at the curbs in the suburbs in Virginia, when I visited my home. My sculptures are delicate and quite light weight, perhaps the opposite of heavy metal sculptures such as Richard Serra creates. They deconstruct the traditional medium in this way. I paint my sculptures gold to reinforce the idea that all things have value. Since gold is a major standard of recognizable worth, I imagined the viewer could perhaps spark a sub-conscious realization of the value of all things.
-Mary Hrbacek
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