December 21st marks the 1 year anniversary of the death of Rico Eastman. John Patrick “Rico” Eastman was a long time close friend of my dad’s, and a world class metal sculptor. I had the pleasure of knowing him my whole life and especially in the last ten years or so I got to know him more as a friend and mentor. I hope everyone continues to learn from Rico's artistic genius. Here is a link to his website which is still up and maintained by his brother: http://www.ricoeastman.com . Here you will find images of his work, as well as some of his inspirations, documentation from his last show in Sydney, Australia (October 2012) and the piece he assembled and exhibited there “Crosshatch” (above), and Rico’s obituary.
You can also see one of Rico's sculptures, "Bones" (above), out front of Smith & May Inc., Rt. 90, West Rockport, ME.
When my parents were out in Santa Fe for his service they found an interview with Rico, written up in Santa Fe, New Mexico’s monthly arts news publication ‘THE Magazine’, in the April 2005 issue. I found it humorous and inspirational, and I wanted to share it here:
Rico Eastman’s sculpture explores the aesthetics of spatial relationships using a combination of patterned and chaotic elements to metaphorically interpret the way in which new information is integrated into existing systems of thought. His work is exhibited both here and abroad-in Santa Fe he is represented by Riva Yares Gallery. His work can be found in many permanent collections, including, Garret Ltd., Waterford, Ireland; University of Texas, El Paso, Texas; and the Waly Corporation, Hong Kong.
MY SENSE OF ART MAKING
An absolute regard for craft, combined with an appropriate conceptual bias. When my technique or inspiration runs short, as it does from time to time, I listen to Car Talk (National Public Radio). Since I’ve already gotten all their aesthetic issues down, it’s easy to call in and explain a situation, or just eavesdrop on someone else’s problem. Que Bueno. If there’s a busy signal at NPR, I recommend the following books: the Old Testament, the Koran, and the Torah. Read them all at the same time. That should get your knickers in a twist. Then browse The Unknown Craftsman, Art as Experience, The Critical Path, The Essential Rumi, and The Aesthetics of the Japanese Lunchbox. R. Crumb is also a valuable resource.
CHOICE OF MATERIALS
My early background as a blacksmith has always informed my work, through process, timing, and personality. Steel has been my first choice since then; it is stubborn and enduring, but can be manipulated under the right conditions. Stone and wood are seductive as well. Though it might sound fishy, I am thinking on diving into water. It is the universal solvent, the primary source of health and well-being on our planet. And it can act as a solid, liquid, gas, or plasma. Lots more potential in the long run, and during the last Ice Age, actually allowed hominid migratory patterns to emerge in the Americas through the Bering Sea. Great stuff, and I have a wonderful wellspring to draw from.
LIFE AND ART – INSEPERABLE?
If I only had a real life to separate … that would be the true miracle. I wake up at all hours of the night sorting the residue of completed projects, gleaning significance from glitches, and rattling the cage of muses past, present, and future. I was blessed years ago by the spirit of process and invention, but unfortunately never signed a contract with specific hours, perks, or a retirement package.
AN ABSENSE OF COMPLEXITY
That’s one of the classic Ono quotes … the question of complexity is enigmatic. There is no art that works outside the hierarchy of culture, personal awareness, and social context. Great visual art really can clarify and distill, since an aesthetic experience is often a pre-verbal, non-linguistic event, and the eyes are a structural extension of the mind/brain system. But who knows what lurks in the shadows of direct perception … so watch out where you shine the flashlight. The two sides of the aesthetic coin are the poetic and the utilitarian. The ongoing question is which side of the bridge do you jump from? But there is another dimension that unifies the apparent distinction. The absence of complexity resides within the tiny Zen ridges on the edge of a dime, connection both sides with the absolute clarity of X-ray vision.
BEING UNEASY
Physically, I’ve been on the brink of absolute chaos during the process of installation twice in the past twenty-five years. Once I was fortunate enough to jump from the top of a ladder as a work collapsed mid-way through completion, before the pins were installed and anchored in the pad. The second occasion, I had no choice but to ride it out inside as a developing prototype moved down around me. That’s hard to beat for an adrenaline rush, and terrified would be the real term to describe it. But psychologically, whenever you push into new territory you can risk all your baggage for the sake of finding something fantastically exciting. To drift back into linguistics, what is the definition of “anesthetic”? It is a substance that creates a lack of sensation without the loss of consciousness, right? So by the process of extension, the opposite term, aesthetic, refers to something that shakes you to the core and slaps you silly, wakes you up, frees you from your odd assumptions and ignorance, sending you back out into the world as a true believer. That’s the kind of uneasy I’d be looking for.
CURRENT WORK/PROJECTS
I’ve got several projects in the works, most using water as a central theme, some of them related to the revolutionary work done at the experimental village of Gaviotas in the llanos of Colombia. The current design focus is the prototype development of low-tech solutions to remedy drought-induced conditions, including a ceramic drip system, an emergent method to reforest inaccessible areas, and a diversion scheme to encourage local grasses to flourish. The most exciting project now is a jazzed-up version of the Archimedes Screw, an age-old device to pump water, re-thought through experiment and observation. I’m simultaneously developing a series of 2-D works using water to distribute oxides in patterned and spontaneous ways. And ongoing is the continued extension of existing bodies of work, which include tensioned steel sculpture and applied design.
TALKING SCULPTURE
I respond to sculpture that acknowledges real-world gravity, but continues to work on you after you’ve walked away from it. Then it becomes a tool for the imagination, similar to how one might react to a great film or performance. That’s where tension, friction, and levity come into play. Conversely, it seems awkward to walk into a place that embraces art that looks like art. That would be the fabled soup described by Nastrudin, devoid of nutrition when you really get down to it, yet still in the same bowl as the real thing might have been. Even salt and pepper won’t help that mess.
Thanks for reading. For more words by Rico, pick up a copy of "Bill Moss - Fabric Artist & Designer", by Marilyn Moss which includes a chapter by Rico in the introduction.
