Collection
Monolith (2016)
The Monolith Series comprises of six sculptures each an earthen Monolith and accompanying figure that explores themes of history, trauma and recovery. The first of the six sculptures Menin Gate at Dawn 2019, is the first of the collection and is constructed as a 1/3 scale Marquette.
Monolith (2016) by Michael Armstrong
Background
The title Menin Gate at Dawn references a historic war artwork by Australian WW1 Artist John Longstaff, Menin Gate at midnight, 1927. The wound within the Menin Gate at Dawn monolith mirrors the Menin Gate arch; and despairs at the optimism with which each generation promises to never return to violence and war it undertook with such enthusiasm, only to have the next generation repeat the mistakes of the last. The work harks back to Armstrongs experience in Afghanistan and Iraq. Walls both of earth and cement were integral to the construction of native villages and military bases throughout Afghanistan and Iraq as it seeks to separate those inside from the dangers of the world beyond. The walls raise the horizon line meters into the air, projecting it into the sky and hiding the world beyond from view. It is within this liminal world that life is conducted for the soldiers and local Afghani and Iraqi defence forces and civilian population. The reclined figure is was crafted in clay and cast in resin before being hand painted.
Inspiration
For four months Armstrong was confined to the walls of a compound in Iraq. His view of the world limited to the trajectory of the sun and the stars of the night sky. Within this confinement he became fascinated by the wall structures; the weathering, the light, the forms, and their confinement of the view. Upon his return, they began appearing in his sculptural works. Their weight seeks to dominate a space, to obstruct and conceal, forcing the viewer to heed its presence. Raw earth as an art medium has several meanings in Armstrong's work. Colour, texture and form are reminiscent of the earthen walls found throughout Afghanistan. Walls marked the existence and gathering of people, separating and protecting them. The ubiquitous walls stood marked by the weather, the people they contained and the conflict they defended their occupants from. Earth is also a literal carrier of history; its strata contains our historic narrative as a civilisation captured within its folds.
Purchase
The Toll (2016)
by Michael Armstrong
Hand painted cast resin
Reclined 1/8 figure
Monolith is now for sale as a single reclined figure. Defined by its expressive gestures, The Toll is understood to represent authentic emotion and the Self. Painting and sculpture, the suggestion of staining reflects the artists expression of the impact of the external world and the struggle for individual expression. Delicate detailed brushwork is aligned with the human experience, whereby materiality of paint equates to stagnation, inertia and obstruction.