nancybauch@yahoo.com
Rumi's Field
porcelain, glass, waxed linen, monofilament
I wanted to define an actual physical space that could invite the viewer to experience the following concept by the poet Rumi: "Out beyond ideas of wrongdoing and rightdoing there is a field. I'll meet you there."
This work begins as a dotted line of white porcelain bells composed in a rhythm that relates to the landscape. It leads the viewer up a hill from the road through four pastures and one woods to a space along the top ridge. Along the way, it tempts the viewer's involvement which becomes part of the work. In return, this response offers back a kind of lightness of being...away from the usual trance of thinking. Upon reaching the end of the path, the bells begin to percolate. The viewer finds themselves surrounded by a protective circle of bells that frame a surprise glimpse of the river. This is Rumi's field. It is a neutrally safe space place meant for personal reflection and private reckoning.
Part of Nancy Bauch’s working studio has been the land that surrounds her house. For years she has walked a trail that was originally an old road that had become completely overgrown. Maintaining this path has been an on going dedication and as time has passed she began to see areas that lent themselves to meditative spaces and began to define places for pauses. What she introduces into the land does not dominate or overwhelm the existing landscape, but instead tries to work with it, producing a new experience.
