JP MARTURANO
ARTIST STATEMENT
BETWEEN SKY AND EARTH
For me, climbing a mountain is somehow a way of seeking for the closest point to the sky while still standing on the ground. When I am at the summit, there is nothing but sky all around. I sense not the massive physical weight of the mountain, but rather an enormous yet intangible presence. I cannot say whether I sense the deity of the mountain, but I am rather overwhelmed by the infinite emptiness of the sky. In the Fragment of the Sky, it could be said that framing the immense mountain landscape is also a way of keeping something that cannot be really grasped. It is similar to photographing a landscape and immortalizing that particular moment. However, in the process of carving a mountain in stone I recreate a space in a three dimensional space. By doing this, I like to think that I am not actually carving the mountain itself, but I am carving the sky that surrounds it…
BETWEEN SKY AND EARTH
For me, climbing a mountain is somehow a way of seeking for the closest point to the sky while still standing on the ground. When I am at the summit, there is nothing but sky all around. I sense not the massive physical weight of the mountain, but rather an enormous yet intangible presence. I cannot say whether I sense the deity of the mountain, but I am rather overwhelmed by the infinite emptiness of the sky. In the Fragment of the Sky, it could be said that framing the immense mountain landscape is also a way of keeping something that cannot be really grasped. It is similar to photographing a landscape and immortalizing that particular moment. However, in the process of carving a mountain in stone I recreate a space in a three dimensional space. By doing this, I like to think that I am not actually carving the mountain itself, but I am carving the sky that surrounds it…
OFFERING AND PROOF PROJECT
In this project, I carry a sculpture I have carved to the peak and offered it to the mountain. This is a symbolic act expressing my climber’s feeling of gratitude toward the mountain for allowing me to reach its summit safely.
In a broader sense, offering the sculpture not only means offering the artwork itself but also the time spent creating the piece and the skills acquired in the process. Considering that my artwork is an extension of myself, I believe that by leaving my sculpture there at the peak, it becomes part of the mountain and I, therefore, somehow become one with the mountain.
The final step in the process entails collecting a small pebble from the summit where I left the sculpture and bringing it down from the mountain, as a symbolic evidence of my journey. Then, this pebble will be the model to work with in order to create a new artwork. So, a simple pebble becomes part of my artwork. On the other hand, the stone which I carved, turned into sculpture, then to offering and finally, became part of the mountain: It became a common piece of rock again. This project is intended to express my veneration and admiration for mountains by linking Art with mountain climbing.
When you climb a high mountain you get away from everyday comforts for a certain period of time and you feel you had stepped into a completely different world. At some point, there are no more sounds of rivers, trees or birds. As you walk, the only sounds that you could hear are those of the wind, your own footsteps and breathing and even your heartbeat becomes a vivid sensation. At times, suddenly the wind stops blowing and the mountain falls in complete silence. You also calm down and realize that the whole world has come to a complete standstill. And all around you, the snow, ice, rocks and clouds that form the landscape are in perfect harmony. Everything is in balance, from the deep blue sky to the patches of snow on the ground. Every stone, from towering cliffs to tiny pebbles are in the precise ideal position where they should be. In those times, I can really sense the harmony of nature.
And in the middle of this scenario, what am I? I feel that all things, visible and invisible, are interconnected and it seemed that they had prepared everything for me and were waiting for that moment to arrive. At that exact moment, all the training and climbing efforts has taken its meaning. I feel that I am not only a spectator anymore. I have become part of that astonishing moment itself and have become part of something far greater and bigger than I am. I am as small as a tiny pebble on top of the big mountain, but I was given the privilege to be there, to be part of the Creation and to become one with Nature.
