Anyone else think yard sculptures are cool? Here's a follow-up to yesterday's post,
"30 uses for a dead tree."Join me as I time travel back,
way back...to 2005. I want to share with you an old article that I just stumbled upon. It's all about
a 7-foot-tall statue of the Buddha, custom made for a front yard. Talk about the ultimate in
yard art. This Buddha was commissioned by Dave and Gunda Hiebert of Lawrence, Kansas. The sculpture was created for them by local artist and
wood-working guru, Dave Werdin-Kennicott. He carved the religious icon from the remains of a diseased black locust
tree.
Werdin-Kennicott used as his model a standing Buddha sculpture that rests in the collection of Kansas University's Spencer Museum of Art. His
tools for the job included all the standard wood-working gear: sanders, chisels, chainsaws, grinders and drills.
Dave Hiebert, owner of the sculpture, was quoted as saying that at first his only aim was to rid his yard of the tree, but he had soon hit upon the idea of having it transformed into a work of
art. Said his wife, Gunda, the sculpture emerged so naturally from the old tree stump, it was almost as if the locust tree was expressing its inner Buddha. Hmm.
I'm sure the neighbors have a love/hate relationship with that thing. As much as I love quirky yard art, I'm not sure I'd have the guts to put a huge sculpture like that in my front yard. Namaste.
Source
Living Together: Balancing His-and-Hers Style
Paint Your Home With An iPhone
Reader comments (Page 1 of 1)
Funny, I was sure this post was going to be about a home in Denver that has a 12-foot statue of Ganesh carved out of a tree smack-dab in the middle of the front yard, with nothing else around it. It's *hideous*, and I feel sorry for the neighbors.
ReplyThis at least is somewhat attractive.
I just want to inform the reader of this article and the artist that eventhough there has been very little mentioning of this but using budda statue or head to decorate your lawn or living room is quite disrespectful. Budda is the creator of Buddism religion like Jesus/God to Christianity and while you see Jesus statue as lawn decorations here (Christmas), you don't see people that worship budda put his statue on their lawn or his 'head' on top of living room side tables. I think your idea is creative but I just want to make sure that you know how it might be viewed elsewhere.
ReplyThis sculpture is in fact more than just an image of the Buddha. The carving was consecrated by a Tibetan Lama in a special ceremony that took place when the sculpture was complete. The honorable Minguyr Rinpochet is the Lama who performed the rite, and as such it is truly a Buddha. The honor bestowed upon this sculpture is what differentiates it from yard art.