Kunst

1981 MFA Sculpture, School of the Art Institute of Chicago

The sculptures can be handled and transformed as one's daily manifestations of change.

Rope sculpture is practical, sensual, meditative and infinite.  Rope and I serve each other in a natural evolvement to create.

Rope is universal and used in all aspects of life.  It is essential for infinity, life, death, and rebirth. The interwoven pattern of the rope is symbolic of the DNA strands that make up all of life.  The results of these patterns are rope sculptures that represent a unique Universe.  A Universe that is full of life.

CURRENT EXHIBIT FEATURING THE ARTIST SONJA WEBER GILKEY

Art Gallery
Pen and Brush Inc.
16 East 10th Street.
New York, NY 10003

Janice Sands, Executive Director

The current exhibit at Pen and Brush Gallery, entitled "Home is Where the Art is", was curated by Dr. Stacy C. Hollander, Senior Curator of the American Folk Art Museum, New York, NY

The opening was the 29th of October and the exhibit had a closing reception on the
22nd of November, 2009.

Prize Awarded

At the opening ceremony, Stacy Hollander made an award to Sonja Weber Gilkey for her creation "Les Ames En Route" which was submitted as an original contribution in Multi Media Rope sculpture.


INFLUENCES

I am very grateful for this significant honor given to me by Dr. Hollander. "Les Ames En Route" (6' H, 28" W, 8" D) is a Multi Media Rope Sculpture created out of Lobster crate materials, twine, boat rope, and beach objects such as feather, seaweed, seashell, and sea glass.

"Les Ames En Route" was created in my atelier in West Boothbay Harbor, Maine, in the summer of 2009.


The influences that shape my work derive from both a strong attachment to nature as well as immersion in cultures both here and abroad.

Growing up in post war Netherlands I was constantly at the sea shore, following childhood pursuits - sailing with a wreath of daisies in my hair, playing with sand and sticks and various grasses. My memories are of the wonderful smell of the sea and the rope which was always in my hands.

These early attachments continue with me today at our family summer place in Maine which gives so many joyful moments to our family and friends. In Maine, I am surrounded by the activities of the lobster men, their boats, crates, the sound of the fog horns and the eddies of water that go by our cottage. The deep power of the ocean, in its storms and tidal flows leave the beaches strewn with seaweed, feathers, and leftover rope which I use in my work.

In addition to my love of the sea I was blessed with family and friends in Chicago where I received an MFA in sculpture at the School of the Art Institute of Chicago (SAIC) and started working with found objects from Lake Michigan.

From our house in Hyde Park, Chicago, we traveled through teaching grants, my husband received, to The Netherlands, Japan, Russia, and China.

In Japan, the Buddha, tea ceremony, tranquility and beauty of the Temples, the moss and Zen gardens, are all a part of my life. In New Mexico, the first people, their ancient religions and symbolic expression through dance, chanting, beautiful art and symbolic feathers, all have made an impact on my soul. The mountains of New Mexico and the experience of White Tantric Yoga and Kundalini Yoga provide a deep emotional core that has been an important source of spiritual inspiration.

Renowned Maine art critic and author Carl Little and his wife came especially to visit my atelier in West Boothbay Harbor, Maine. I was very honored with their visit since Mr. Little is the preeminent author and art critic of Maine Art

Sonja Weber Gilkey

Born in Amsterdam, The Netherlands, 1938

Educated in Europe (Holland and Switzerland)

Moved to the United States in 1961

Collections

Selected Group Shows

Solo Exhibitions