The Boger Gallery and Williams Memorial Chapel are displaying the unique work of Stephen Watson, an artist whose medium is ground spices.
Watson’s spice art installments are made by sprinkling powdered spices and herbs onto pieces of precut plexiglass that are laid on the floor. Custom designed stencils are used to layer the spices and create intricate patterns and designs.
Watson said he has been working with spices exclusively for almost two years and there was a journey that brought him to using such an unusual medium.
“I was making a body of work for a church in Tuscaloosa, Alabama. I was making work on an every other week basis that responded to the sermon being preached. I would meet with the worship pastor or the (teaching) pastor …show more content…
The piece in the chapel focuses around the trinity, Watson said, and the design consists of triangles made out of biblical spices such as frankincense and myrrh.
“(That installment is) about trying to understand God and the glimpses that he gives to us in even things as simple as the beauty of aroma, color, shapes and things fitting together,” Watson said. “But it’s also about the absurdity of it. I mean, God is not triangular.”
Cumming said having the understanding that God cannot be defined or accurately represented by man is important and that is part of the message Watson is trying to communicate.
“We come up with models and diagrams in order to try and explain theology or explain the nature of God,” Cummings said. “All of that is a nice try, but you always have to keep in mind that you cannot explain the inexplicable, you cannot bind that which is unboundable.”
The installments of his work is a large undertaking, Watson said, so recruiting help to make his art is an important and necessary aspect of his …show more content…
“It’s really cool to be able to stand there and make the art with the artist, and talk to him and go through the whole process and come out with a finished product,” Boggs said. “His designs are just really enjoyable in general and so it’s really just a chill, relaxing process making it, and then at the end of it all, it’s beautiful.”
As an art student, Boggs said spending time working alongside Watson was educational as well.
“It’s interesting to see how he got to this place with his art,” Boggs said. “You can see the journey that he has taken you can kind of see and how your own journey is going to go. Its relatable.”
Boggs said he encourages everyone to take time to visit Watson’s work.
“If you haven't walked through the gallery I really advise you to. Go whenever you are alone. It’s really meditative and peaceful,” Boggs said. “(With) the smell of the spices, it’s quiet and you just see the patterns and you just stair at them and you can think and introspect about his message through his
Watson’s spice art installments are made by sprinkling powdered spices and herbs onto pieces of precut plexiglass that are laid on the floor. Custom designed stencils are used to layer the spices and create intricate patterns and designs.
Watson said he has been working with spices exclusively for almost two years and there was a journey that brought him to using such an unusual medium.
“I was making a body of work for a church in Tuscaloosa, Alabama. I was making work on an every other week basis that responded to the sermon being preached. I would meet with the worship pastor or the (teaching) pastor …show more content…
The piece in the chapel focuses around the trinity, Watson said, and the design consists of triangles made out of biblical spices such as frankincense and myrrh.
“(That installment is) about trying to understand God and the glimpses that he gives to us in even things as simple as the beauty of aroma, color, shapes and things fitting together,” Watson said. “But it’s also about the absurdity of it. I mean, God is not triangular.”
Cumming said having the understanding that God cannot be defined or accurately represented by man is important and that is part of the message Watson is trying to communicate.
“We come up with models and diagrams in order to try and explain theology or explain the nature of God,” Cummings said. “All of that is a nice try, but you always have to keep in mind that you cannot explain the inexplicable, you cannot bind that which is unboundable.”
The installments of his work is a large undertaking, Watson said, so recruiting help to make his art is an important and necessary aspect of his …show more content…
“It’s really cool to be able to stand there and make the art with the artist, and talk to him and go through the whole process and come out with a finished product,” Boggs said. “His designs are just really enjoyable in general and so it’s really just a chill, relaxing process making it, and then at the end of it all, it’s beautiful.”
As an art student, Boggs said spending time working alongside Watson was educational as well.
“It’s interesting to see how he got to this place with his art,” Boggs said. “You can see the journey that he has taken you can kind of see and how your own journey is going to go. Its relatable.”
Boggs said he encourages everyone to take time to visit Watson’s work.
“If you haven't walked through the gallery I really advise you to. Go whenever you are alone. It’s really meditative and peaceful,” Boggs said. “(With) the smell of the spices, it’s quiet and you just see the patterns and you just stair at them and you can think and introspect about his message through his