The initial idea of experimenting with fire and wood intrigued me. Passing by the local underground Used Book Store on Eglinton, you can smell cinnamon in the air. Its a byproduct of the environment of evening commuters intersecting purposely heading somewhere. I'm fortunate in my search to stumble on Bryan Sentance's honest offering entitled 'Wood: 'The World of Woodwork and Carving.'

     Fire transforms. It changes the physical state of a thing and depending on the height of its vibration it can be incendiary. A tree is not just 'raw material' that provides 'wood.' It has the natural gift of providing food, oxygen and shelter. Both element and living organism provide value, for some it may be purely functional and/or aesthetic while for others it may be spiritual or ceremonial.

                                                                                         Passage
                                                                                           8" x 12"
                                                                               mixed on wood panel 

     Finding inspiration in Hermann Hesse's classic narrative of a young Sadu named 'Siddartha' and his journey for understanding, the above work explores the transmutation that occurs in his philosophy as it is impacted by his changing life-role(s).

     The English word for the act of drawing with a hot tool whether it involves 'crude scorching or delicate sketching' on wood is referred to as 'pyrography' (Greek - "pyro" fire). The act of using fire and wood as mediums for artistic expression has existed in many cultures for centuries.