Gargoyle Statues in perspective of
Art
Gargoyles and grotesques are still carved today by a select few
craftsmen. Walter S. Arnold is one such sculptor who still makes
these fantastic creatures. Some of Arnold's creations appear on the
Washington National Cathedral, which is home to some of the most
impressive gargoyles in the United States. Arnold commented on what
inspires his creations. He said, "When I was working on the
Washington Cathedral for five years, we had an old New Yorker
cartoon up in the shop. It was a medieval carving shop, and some
patron, a bishop or duke, was in there. The carver was working on a
gargoyle, and he had empty flasks of wine lying around the floor.
The patron was saying, 'Where do you get your inspiration?'
"Seriously, it comes from a wide range of things -- first of all,
from looking at a lot of sculptural forms from all sorts of
cultures and times, looking at people and animals. It has always
been a form that's allowed for a lot of creativity and innovation.
It's one of the things I like about them."
So is there something spiritual to gargoyles? Arnold said, "In a
way, stone is alive. It's a pure, natural material; each piece is
different and has its own character and variations in it. I've
spent enough time visiting quarries to have a sense of how
beautiful the quarries and the mountains are, and if I'm taking
stone out of the mountain, I have kind of a responsibility to
create something with it that justifies cutting it out of the
mountain."
How about supernatural? "The artist takes it [the artwork] ninety
to ninety-five percent of the way, and then every viewer comes to
it with their own perspective. In a way, each viewer finishes it
differently. So that part of it happens after it leaves my hands,
and it will speak differently to each person. I certainly work to
make them come alive and look alive, and some of that is technical,
some of that is artistic, and some of it is just my feeling on the
pieces."
Gargoyles are a compilation of many different animals, both real
and mythical, the artists' inspiration, and our own imaginations.
They can be funny, intimidating, and beautiful -- sometimes all in
one piece. Gargoyles serve as a "living" reminder of our Pagan
roots and our very supernatural world.
