Pulling a Torch From the Sky Book Cover

Through my relationship with author JM White and the William Gay Archive, I was asked to do the book covers and design for his latest project on the life of Radical Dzogchen Buddhism teacher and scholar Keith Dowman. Author of many books on Buddhism himself, Mr. Dowman has lived a unique life.

From Amazon: Keith Dowman's life has been totally unconventional, and his role as an unorthodox master of Tibetan dharma has been recognized by traditional lamas and their adepts. He began as a pilgrim, became a translator, then a peripatetic teacher and finally a lineage holder. The Tibetans acknowledge Keith's role in the lineage of Drukpa Kunley in which the teacher appears as a traveler on the road, independent from institutions or ceremonial conventions. These are not the tulkus or the geshes; these are the wisdom holders, the divine madmen, the itinerant yogis, perpetually traveling, teaching, and writing.
Keith's teachings draw on his many translations and his extensive reading of Tibetan Dzogchen philosophy. He is strikingly unadorned and one hundred percent himself. He is sharp, deep, humble, transparent and unwaveringly confident in his view of Radical Dzogchen. He has no institutional links, so there cannot be any institutional lineage or formal certification. There will be no transfer of a "title" in a formal ceremony. As Keith has stated, "It will be a matter of simply pulling the torch out of the sky".

Watercolor was used for the landscape and sky, as well as the Tibetan styled clouds. The blue skinned being, Samantabhadra, was painted using acrylic. The circular torch design was sculpted and made into resin, then gilded in gold leaf. All the elements were photographed by William Lemke and separated digitally, which allowed me to collage them together in a precise way with any typography.

Thank you to JM White and Anomolaic Press for the opportunity.

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The Fetal Crown

Figure Twenty Two.-The Fetal Crown
2018. 15.5”h x 9”w x 9”d.
Human fetal tibias and ulnas, Bronze, Mahogany, Resin, Blown glass, Gold Leaf, Silk, Acrylic, Hardware.

A crown of leaves upon the crown of the head. The cross of mending fetal skull plates and the crossing of bones. Youth and death, the echos within life.

Custom bell jar by Richard Jones at Studio Paran.

Front view

Back view

Side view

Detail of front view

Detail of side view

Experientia Nostra Ossiferous

Figure Eighteen.- Experientia Nostra Ossiferous (Our Ossiferous Experience)
2014-2018. 19”h x 16.5”w x 16.5”d.
Human mandible, Bronze, Mahogany, Resin, Blown glass, Gold leaf, Silk, Acrylic, Hardware.

Experientia Nostra Ossiferous is a sculpture that blends the forms of the reliquary with the anatomical display. In a parallel sense, it draws its visual inspiration from myth, the Roman god Janus, and a rare congenital defect, diprosopus. Janus is the god of time, beginnings and endings. The Janus Head is characterized by two faces, one looking to the future, one to the past. Diprosopus, also known as cranialfacial duplication, is an extremely rare disorder whereby facial features are replicated to a certain degree.

Bone holds its history and can be read like rings on a tree. As it grows and lengthens, as it breaks and mends, all can be told in diagnostic imaging. The title of the sculpture could be translated to "Our Ossiferous Existence", an existence we all move through, and like the Janus Head, hold one face to the future and one to the past.

Bell jar made by Richard Jones at Studio Paran.

Front view

Detail of 3/4 view

Detail of side view

Back view

Beneath the Remnant Veil

Figure Nineteen.- Beneath the Remnant Veil.
2009-2016. 4'h x 32”w x 5.5”d.
Bronze, Wood, Resin, Acrylic, Gold leaf, Silk, Hardware.

Now that it's finished, it's hard to believe this sculpture was started nine years ago. From the onset, this work was to be a blend of reliquary and anatomical display, but it went through many changes over the years. Design elements of the frame were referenced from Gothic sources, with everything sculpted and fabricated in my studio. The central figure is bronze, and is to evoke the wax anatomical models of the past. Where those displays were dissected and clean, the human object here is bulbous and nearly unrecognizable, yet it was my intention to make it elegant still. This figure, and the objects tucked within it, are remnants of something once alive and vital: earth, land, and sea.

Beneath the Remnant Veil.

Beneath the Remnant Veil, detail.

The Ephemeral Knot

Figure Seventeen.- The Ephemeral Knot
2015-2016. 7”h x 19.5”w x 10.5”d.
Bronze, Wood, Resin, Acrylic, Gold leaf, Silk, Hardware.

Something akin to a Memento Mori, The Ephemeral Knot is a sculpture depicting the bridge between youth and death. The child's hand grasps a clavicle bone, the first bone to begin the process of ossification. The clavicle can be regarded as ancient in terms of the body, and here represents time's passing as well as the end of life. The red silk bow is tied around three extensor muscles: Extensor Digitorum, Extensor Digiti Minimi, and Extensor Carpi Ulnaris. These muscles, in general, function to extend the fingers and wrist. Their role here is to illustrate release, a letting go of life. The knot, or bow within this piece, represents life. The loosening of a knot could be seen as the unraveling of existence. Interestingly, the silk bow will be the first component of this piece to decay, as the rest of the materials are far more time stable. Lastly, the snail, with its coiled shell, is another reference to journey and purity.

The Ephemeral Knot, front.
 

The Ephemeral Knot, front detail.
 

The Ephemeral Knot, back view.
 

The Ephemeral Knot, back view detail.
 

I wanted to give a special word of thanks to Nova Hansen, who was so willing to participate in the original life casting. Thank you as well to her parents, Leif and Rebekah Hansen. All photographs are by William Lemke.