Reverse Abstraction Photographic Drawings

My imagery is often inspired by prehistoric or ancient art, myths and fantasy. I think about how we relate to humans in other cultures, what we have in common with them and with our species throughout time. These Reverse Abstraction Photographic Drawings are creating new myths in our contemporary world.

"As I Think" Sculpture by Katie Deits c2004

      A  life-size  head  and  shoulders  sculpture  of  a  nude,  androgynous  person, with  an inquisitive  expression, is  inscribed with quotations  that  have influenced  my  personal life philosophies.  The person is obviously deep in thought. It has been said that "Clothes make the man."  It is my contention that thoughts make the person; the individual is the sum of his or her thoughts.

      Buddha taught, "All that we are is the result of what we have thought," while Bible text reads, "As a man thinketh in his heart, so is he."

      A book which has profoundly affected Western thought is "As a Man Thinketh" by James Allen, whose message is one of hope: "Only the wise man, only he whose thoughts are controlled and purified, makes the winds and the storms of the soul obey him."

      Upon first seeing the sculpture, the viewer will be intrigued perhaps by the expression and the openness of the figure. Upon closer inspection, the viewer will have the opportunity to read the words on the flesh, to "get inside the person's head," and to absorb the quotations into the viewer's consciousness.

Size: 17"x 14"x 8.5" Bronze Edition is featured in Scripps Florida - "NEXUS: Science + Art."

Material: Clay Original (Artist's note: This clay sculpture was created using a live model as reference and then alterations were made to the face and figure. No molds were utilized.)

 

     Gandhi was one of the greatest examples of leadership in the history of the world. He led by personal example, and his philosophy has inspired millions. Gandhi said, "To change the world, first change yourself." He not only said it, he lived it.

     Gandhi's Biography Box is entitled "The Path to Freedom." It illustrates his journey leading India to independence from England. The spinning wheel was his symbol because he encouraged the Indian people not to buy British cloth, but to become independent by growing crops and making their own cloth.

     The front of the Biography Box shows the shape of India, the Indian Flag flying on a flagpole with the British Flag falling to the ground. In the background is the flag of Pakistan.

     On the second side, Gandhi is pictured as a barrister (lawyer) in South Africa, where he defiantly burned his "colored only" registration and was thrown off of a train for riding in a first-class cabin. Books which influenced him are pictured above: Thoreau, Tolstoy, Ruskin, the Koran, Buddha's teachings, and an excerpt from Jesus' Sermon on the Mount.

     The third side has a jail window with the number of days Gandhi spent in prison for his beliefs (2,338 days, or about 7 years). His thin, seated figure represents his fasting protests. He wrote books, magazines, and newspapers to promote his ideas and the cause of Indian liberation.  He suggested that people burn the British cloth and led a peaceful march to the sea to make salt. It was illegal to make salt, as only the British had the right to make it. The act of civil disobedience landed many Indians in jail, and, although many were injured, they did not strike back at the British soldiers.

     The final side shows a tablet inscribed with what  Gandhi said were the Seven Deadly Sins.

     They are:

         Wealth without work     

         Pleasure without conscience

         Knowledge without character

         Business without ethics

         Science without humanity

         Religion without sacrifice

         and Politics without principle

     Gandhi was assassinated in 1948. His funeral pyre is in the foreground, with the crowd in the background  mourning his death.       People viewing the sculpture learn about  Gandhi  and his quest  for Indian Independence, but  also may realize  the importance of  continuous vigilance  in the area of personal freedom and human rights.

"Dr. King, where have we gone?" Sculpture and Installation by Katie Deits c 2003

      A Biography Box sculpture depicting the life of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., is placed on a pedestal.  Although tremendous strides have been made since the Civil Rights Movement in the 1960's and Dr. King's tragic assassination, our society still  has deep-rooted problems  in the human rights arena.

      The Biography Box is a four-sided container made of clay which has been fired in a kiln. Throughout the surface of the box are excerpts from King's speeches and writings.

      On the top, King is walking down a path surrounded by turbulent waters. His outstretched arm gestures that this is the way, the path to freedom. He is leading a small girl who looks to him  to protect and guide her. She represents  Ruby Bridges, the first black child  to be integrated  into a white school. Although King didn't lead her personally in l960, she represents the African American people, and the book in her hand  represents the power of  a good education. Behind the figures are symbols of four powerful leaders who influenced King and who also were assassinated for their beliefs.

      First, Jesus Christ, who, in his Sermon on the Mount, preached to "love your enemies, bless those who curse you, do good to those who hate you, and pray for those who spitefully use you and persecute you."

      Second, is President Abraham Lincoln, who authored the Emancipation Proclamation and declared, "This nation shall have a new birth of freedom."

      The spinning wheel represents Mohandas Gandhi, who invented the word "Satyagraha" which translates to "Truth love force." His principles of non-violence and non-cooperation were studied, adopted, and implemented by Dr. King, who believed emphatically in their effectiveness.

      The final symbol is for President John F. Kennedy, who initiated the Civil Rights Act prior to his assassination. He said, "We can help make the world safe for diversity."

      On the path in front of Dr. King are two stepping stones with the words, "The Path to Freedom" and "With God all things are possible." Dr. King had a tremendous faith, which gave him strength and hope in his darkest hours.

      The first side of the box represents King's birth in 1929 to a strong family unit of school teacher Alberta King and her husband Rev. Martin Luther King, Sr., who was the minister at Ebenezer Baptist Church in Atlanta, GA. Above, young King turns his back on a world of "white only" and "colored" signs, Jim Crow laws, and name-calling words such as "nigger" and "coon." He excelled at school, studying religion and philosophy. The books on the shelf above him represent some of his studies and influences, particularly "On Civil Disobedience" by Henry David Thoreau. Above King's head hangs a portrait of Gandhi. King received his BA from Morehouse College in Atlanta, his master's degree in Divinity from Crozer Theological Seminary in Pennsylvania, and his Ph.D. in Systematic Theology from Boston University.

      It was while he was in Boston that he met an educated voice student, Coretta Scott. They became life partners when they were married in 1953. She is pictured here listening to her husband preach at The Dexter Baptist Church in Montgomery, Alabama, where he was a minister. It was in Montgomery on December 1, 1955, that a tired seamstress named Rosa Parks refused to give up her bus seat for a white man. After her arrest, King helped to organize and support a year-long bus boycott. King's house, pictured at the lower left, was bombed one evening, but fortunately no one was injured. The words carved into the steps say, "We must learn to meet hate with love. Only love can drive out hate. God loves all his children. Do not humiliate your opponent. Win his friendship and understanding."

      The third side pictures King in the Birmingham Jail writing the open letter to white religious leaders who had encouraged him to be patient and to wait. He poignantly wrote: "Freedom is never voluntarily given by the oppressor; it must be demanded by the oppressed." To the left, King stands in front of the Washington Monument and speaks to the crowds. An excerpt from his speech is written above. On the steps is written: "Let freedom ring from every mountainside. Black supremacy is as dangerous as white supremacy. Hate cannot drive out hate." The next year, King was honored with the Nobel Peace Prize in Oslo, Norway. The symbol on the medal is pictured at the lower left.

      The fourth panel begins with the Civil Rights Marches. At the lower left are books written by Dr. King. Above the books is the American flag, waving; on it are King's words, "Injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere." King was cut down by an assassin's bullet in Memphis, Tennessee, on April 4, 1968. His widow and four children are shown in a church by his coffin. Their tiny faces exude the pain of their loss. Their names are written in the upper left. The night before he was killed, King delivered a speech where he prophetically said: "I have been to the mountaintop. I've seen the Promised Land. I may not get there with you." The script of the steps quotes King and the negro-slave spiritual, "Free at last, thank God Almighty, I'm free at last."

      The inside of the Biography Box is a time capsule that contains items such as King's books and biographies, Life magazines documenting his life, a tape of his speeches, a first issue of the Postal stamp honoring him, the PBS documentary of the Civil Rights Movement, the movie "The Long Walk Home" about the bus boycott, and Alex Haley's "Roots."

      I was asked recently, "Why would a middle-aged white woman do a sculpture of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.?"  I grew up in the South, where segregation was the norm. When I was a child, we didn't mean to be hateful when we called black people "niggers," that is what we thought they were called. It wasn't until I went away to college that I was exposed to a black person, other than an occasional house cleaner who came to our home. Once in college, I developed a new awareness. I came to believe that Dr. King was one of the greatest Americans who ever lived. I realized  that  he freed ALL Americans  from the bonds of  segregation and America from that stigma.   It is a story  that needs to be told  again and Again and AGAIN in order to protect our freedom.

      After viewing this sculpture, someone asked me if I have Black blood. Answering what I considered an odd question, I said, "We all have Black blood, after all the human race began in Africa. If we all will consider how alike we are and not how different, perhaps we can strive for understanding and peace between all races, religious beliefs, and nations."

       As people view the installation, they will learn about the life of Dr. King and his efforts to bring civil rights equality to our nation. They will become more aware of the problem of civil rights. I have a dream that they will want to help become part of the solution in creating a more just and kind world.

 "Around the Block, Around the World" Photographic Exhibition by Katie Deits   

In 1968, when my father gave me my first camera, photography seemed like magic, capturing the image, freezing a moment in time forever.  Then, in the darkroom under the glow of the orange safelights, magically an image emerged from a white sheet of  paper. Picking up the camera and "hitting the streets" became  an adventure of outward and  inner discovery.   As I perfected my techniques, I recorded my travels around the world and in my own neighborhood.  Opportunities to create were everywhere; they only had to be seen and captured.  My interests were not merely to document the scenic vistas, but to show the people and their circumstances.  The journey included the breezy Greek isle of Myconos, Italian towns like Assisi and Firenze, migrant worker  camps  in  Belle  Glade, New  York's  lower  east  side,  and Tampa's then ghetto-like Ybor city.   Often found were poverty and difficult living conditions.  Amazingly, despite their unfortunate circumstances, children everywhere exhibited a joy and zest for life. 

    Then, a book was given to me that profoundly affected me, illuminating and underscoring what I had observed.  In his book Man's Search for Meaning, Viktor Frankl recommends that people "say yes to life in spite of everything."  He states that "life is potentially meaningful, even for those who are most miserable" and recognizes "the human capability to creatively turn life's negative aspects into something positive or constructive."  He speaks of "an optimism in the face of tragedy and a view of the "human potential which at its best always allows for:                                    

            1.) turning suffering into a human achievement and accomplishment,

            2.) drawing from guilt the opportunity to change oneself for the better, and

            3.) deriving from life's transitoriness an incentive to take responsible action."

    People around the world continually demonstrate this courage, tenacity, and zest for living.  Nuns in Assisi scurry up a one-way street the "wrong way" symbolically against the current, as in life, choosing their own spiritual path.  Ghetto children smile impishly through torn window screens.  Black-draped women silently sit in the warm sun  - picturesque monoliths to their society. A migrant child waits by the door in a starched white dress, perfectly groomed by her grandmother.   These everyday heroes continue on, despite life's difficulties, with what Frankl calls a "tragic optimism." They continue to inspire us and give us hope. And they are all around us to observe and capture on film. 

            The  opportunity  to  study  art,  great  painters,  and  their  use  of  symbolism  to communicate has also been a great influence.  Over the years, I have come to realize that the role of  the artist  in society  is not just  to document  and  make pretty  pictures  for  visual enjoyment.  The role  is to present  the opportunity  to the viewer  to become more aware, to present a philosophical concept, and to effect societal change and personal growth.  My desire is in some way to help make that contribution and to offer hope in our often difficult world.